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diff --git a/old/69769-0.txt b/old/69769-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 3849940..0000000 --- a/old/69769-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6199 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The boys' book of Indian battles and -adventures, by John Blake - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The boys' book of Indian battles and adventures - with anecdotes about them - -Author: John Blake - -Release Date: January 11, 2023 [eBook #69769] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Brian Coe and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOYS' BOOK OF INDIAN -BATTLES AND ADVENTURES *** - - - - - - -[Illustration: INDIAN MAIDEN.] - - - - - THE - BOYS’ BOOK - OF - INDIAN - Battles and Adventures. - - [Illustration] - - New York: - JAMES MILLER. - - - - - THE - BOYS’ BOOK - OF INDIAN - Battles and Adventures, - WITH ANECDOTES ABOUT THEM. - - ILLUSTRATED WITH TEN ENGRAVINGS - - BY THE AUTHOR OF “EVENINGS IN BOSTON,” “RAMON - THE ROVER OF CUBA,” ETC. - - New York: - JAMES MILLER, 522 BROADWAY. - M.DCCC.LXVI. - - Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, by - JAMES MILLER, -in the Clerk’s office of the District Court of the United States, for the - Southern District of New York. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -The character of the aboriginal inhabitants of the western continent is -in many respects remarkable and striking. It possesses great interest -for the student of history as well as the observer of human nature. -Still this character has never been properly exhibited in a connected -view. One is obliged to detect the traits in detached incidents and -scattered descriptions; and thus by a sort of inductive process to -determine the real disposition, powers and capabilities of the North -American Savage. It is for the purpose of bringing the materials of this -inductive process within the compass of a single volume of moderate size -that these “Anecdotes” have been collected. They present the savage in -all his various aspects and relations, in all circumstances of sorrow -and joy, danger, difficulty and triumph. The incidents here narrated, -while they exhibit the most prominent traits of the Indian character, -also bring into view the most striking passages of our national history -in its connection with the aborigines, and thus serve a double purpose -as an exercise in historical as well as philosophical study. Its chief -object is utility. Its particular design is to subserve the great cause -of national education. - - NEW YORK, _Oct. 1st, 1860_. - - - - -INDIAN BATTLES AND ADVENTURES. - - - - -INDIAN HONESTY. - - -In the character of the Indians of North America there are many traits -which their white neighbours would do well to imitate. Among these, -strict honesty is one. Mr. Catlin gives the credit of this virtue to -all the wild tribes which he visited, not corrupted by intercourse with -civilized nations. Bolts and bars, for the protection of property, among -them are unknown. He cites many examples to prove this. The following -anecdote is from another source. - -An Indian being among his white neighbours, asked for a little tobacco -to smoke, and one of them, having some loose in his pocket, gave him -a handful. The day following, the Indian came back, inquiring for the -donor, saying he had found a quarter of a dollar among the tobacco; being -told that as it was given him he might as well keep it, he answered, -pointing to his breast: ‘I got a good man and a bad man here; and the -good man say, it is not mine, I must return it to the owner; the bad man -say, why he gave it to you, and it is your own now; the good man say, -that’s not right, the tobacco is yours, not the money; the bad man say, -never mind, you got it, go buy some dram; the good man say, no, no, you -must not do so; so I don’t know what to do, and I think to go to sleep; -but the good man and the bad man keep talking all night, and trouble me; -and now I bring the money back I feel good.’ - - - - -HONOR AMONG INDIANS. - - -There is no class of human beings on earth, who hold a pledge more sacred -and binding, than do the North American Indians. A sample of this was -witnessed during the Winnebago war of 1827, in the person of Dekker-re, -a celebrated chief of that nation, who, among four other Indians of his -tribe, was taken prisoner at Prairie du Chien. Colonel Snelling, of the -5th regiment of infantry, who then commanded that garrison, despatched -a young Indian into the nation, with orders to inform the other chiefs -of Dekker-re’s band, that unless those Indians who were perpetrators of -the horrid murders of some of our citizens, were brought to the fort -and given up within ten days, Dekker-re and the other four Indians who -were retained as hostages, would be shot at the end of that time. The -awful sentence was pronounced in the presence of Dekker-re, who, though -proclaiming his own innocence of the outrages which had been committed -by others of his nation, exclaimed that he feared not death, though it -would be attended with serious consequences, inasmuch as he had two -affectionate wives and a large family of small children who were entirely -dependent on him for their support; but if necessary, he was willing -to die for the honour of his nation. The young Indian had been gone -several days, and no intelligence was yet received from the murderers. -The dreadful day being near at hand, and Dekker-re being in a bad state -of health, asked permission of the Colonel to go to the river to indulge -in his long accustomed habit of bathing; in order to improve his health. -Upon which, Col. S. told him that, if he would promise, on the honor of -a chief, that he would not leave the town, he might have his liberty, -and enjoy all his privileges, until the day of the appointed execution. -Accordingly he first gave his hand to the Colonel, thanked him for his -friendly offer, then raised both his hands aloft, and in the most solemn -adjuration, promised that he would not leave the bounds prescribed, and -said, if he had a hundred lives, he would sooner lose them all than -forfeit his word, or deduct from his proud nation one particle of its -boasted honor. He was then set at liberty. He was advised to flee to -the wilderness, and make his escape. “But no,” said he, “do you think I -prize life above honor? or that I would betray a confidence reposed in -me, for the sake of saving my life?” He then complacently remained until -nine days of the ten which he had to live had elapsed, and nothing heard -from the nation with regard to the apprehension of the murderers, his -immediate death became apparent; but no alteration could be seen in the -countenance of the chief. It so happened that on that day, Gen. Atkinson -arrived with his troops from Jefferson Barracks, and the order for -execution was countermanded, and the Indians permitted to repair to their -homes. - - - - -INDIAN ELOQUENCE. - - -The Indian warrior Tecumseh, who fell in the late American war, was -not only an accomplished military commander, but also a great natural -statesman and orator. Among the many strange, and some strongly -characteristic events of his life, the council which the American -General Harrison held with the Indians at Vincennes, in 1811, affords an -admirable instance of the sublimity which sometimes distinguished his -eloquence. The chiefs of some tribes had come to complain of a purchase -of lands which had been made from the Kickafoos. The council effected -nothing, but broke up in confusion, in consequence of Tecumseh having -called General Harrison “a liar.” During the long talks which took place -in the conference, Tecumseh having finished one of his speeches, looked -round, and seeing every one seated, while no seat was prepared for him, a -momentary frown passed over his countenance. Instantly General Harrison -ordered that a chair should be given him. Some person presented one, and -bowing, said to him, “Warrior, your father, General Harrison, offers -you a seat.” Tecumseh’s dark eye flashed. “My father!” he exclaimed -indignantly, extending his arms towards heaven; “the sun is my father, -and the earth is my mother; she gives me nourishment, and I repose upon -her bosom.” As he ended, he suddenly seated himself on the ground. - - - - -INDIAN COQUETRY. - - -The Chawanon Indians, inhabiting the lake of Marcotti, and who are -considered the most warlike and civilized of the American Indians, have -a manner of courtship which we believe to be peculiar to themselves. -When such of their young women as have pretensions to beauty, attain -their twelfth year, which is the usual period of their marriage, they -either keep themselves quite secluded at home, or when they go out muffle -themselves up in such a manner, that nothing is seen but their eyes. On -these indications of beauty, they are eagerly sought in marriage, and -those suitors who have acquired the greatest reputation as warriors or -hunters, obtain the consent of the family. After this, the lover repairs -to the cabin, where the beauty is lying enveloped on her couch. He gently -approaches and uncovers her face, so that his person may be seen, and -if this be to her mind, she invites him to lie down by her side; if not, -she again conceals her face, and the lover retires. A husband has the -privilege of marrying all his wife’s sisters as they arrive at age, so -that after, often before, his first wife is thirty, he has married and -abandoned at least a dozen. - - - - -WEATHERFORD. - - “I come, my Wilwullah! - Guide hither our boy! - I bring from the forest - Its spirit and joy: - Why lingereth my soft-eyed?” - And dark grew his brow; - “Thy hunter returneth— - Where, truant, art thou?” - - He enters his wigwam— - What meaneth that cry? - His bold form what freezeth? - What filmeth his eye? - The work of the white men! - His mate of the wood, - And their fawns, the light-footed, - All couched in their blood! - - Before a cold foeman - The Indian is cold; - But his heart in his wild-wood - Is like molten gold. - The warrior has clasped them— - He’s red in their gore! - Has raved and wept o’er them— - But ne’er will weep more! - - “Ye snow-brow destroyers! - Ye false and ye foul! - For this, by Manito! - For this shall ye howl! - I swear that pale thousands - Shall weep for this blow; - For each drop here wasted, - Red rivers shall flow! - - “When smoke dims the distance, - And shrieks fill the air, - Then white lips will whisper, - ‘_Fly! Weatherford’s there!_’ - Your warriors shall perish; - We’ll laugh at their shame; - And the blood of your loved ones - Shall hiss in the flame!” - - How was that vow answered? - Ask Mimms: it will tell! - Where the battle was hottest - There _his_ hatchet fell; - Where the shriek was the loudest, - Where freest ran blood, - Be sure, mid his victims, - There Weatherford stood! - - But feeble the red men, - Though fierce in the fray; - Like mists in the morning, - They melted away. - “Give us peace!” prayed the vanquished; - “The white chieftain gives - No peace”—was the answer— - “While Weatherford lives.” - - That lion-souled chieftain’s[1] - Alone in his tent: - ’Tis midnight; still over - His toil he is bent. - The drapery is rustled— - He turns not his ear: - “Ho! Look up, proud warrior, - Thy foreman is here!” - - A dark form stood o’er him, - His red arm on high; - But quailed not the chieftain - Beneath his dark eye. - “What art thou, bold savage? - Sooth, light the foot fell - That stole through the watch - Of my tried sentinel.” - - “Where Weatherford willeth, - Even there will he go; - He heeds not thy sentry - When seeking his foe.” - “I fear thee not, boaster!” - “Thou needest not fear; - For peace for my people, - For peace came I here. - - “Thou’d’st have me sent to thee. - And sent to thee bound; - But Weatherford dies not - The death of a hound: - No recreant, no trembler, - No captive am I— - I’ve fetterless lived, and - Will fetterless die. - - “To save my crushed people - I die, but die free— - A sacrifice worthy - Of them and of thee!” - “No—back to thy forest— - Bold warrior go! - I strike not the head - That is bent to the blow - - “Aye, go! but remember - When meet we again, - Thy lot is the gibbet, - The cord and the chain. - Be strong for the battle! - No quarter we yield: - No fear and no mercy! - Now, back to the field!” - - “I long have fought with thee, - And still would fight on— - But my true Seminoles— - My warriors are gone! - My brave ones I’d rally, - And fight at their head; - But where is the warrior - Can rally the dead! - - “At red Talledegha, - Emuckfaw they stood— - Thou knowest that our valleys - Are black with their blood. - By the wailing Savannah - Unburied they lie; - Spare, warrior, the remnant, - Let Weatherford die!” - - No longer the soldier - The bold plea could hear, - But quick from his bronzed cheek - He hurried a tear. - “Devoted and brave! As - Thou will’st shall it be; - Here’s peace to thy people, - And friendship for thee!” - - -[Illustration: Weatherford’s Revenge.] - - -THE FOLLOWING IS THE INCIDENT ON WHICH THE FOREGOING LINES ARE FOUNDED.[2] - -Billy Weatherford, the celebrated savage warrior, is, at length, -vanquished—the destroyer is conquered—the hand which so profusely dealt -death and desolation among the whites, is now paralyzed—it is motionless. -He died at his late residence near Montpelier, in this state, on the 9th -inst. His deeds of war are well known to the early settlers in South -Alabama, and will be remembered by them while they live: and be talked -of, with horror, by generations yet unborn. But his dauntless spirit has -taken its flight—“he is gone to the land of his fathers.” - -Billy Weatherford, denominated ‘The Prophet,’ was about one-fourth -Indian (some say a half breed) his ancestry, on the white side, having -been Scottish. It has been said, that he boasted of having no _Yankee_ -(meaning American) blood in his veins. - -This ferocious chief led the hostile Indians to the attack of Fort -Mimms, at Tensau, on the 30th of August, 1813; which resulted in the -indiscriminate massacre of men, women, and children, to the number of -near four hundred. He was also a leader associated with the prophets -Francis and Sinquister, at the battle fought on the 23d of December -following, at Ekchanachaca, or ‘The Holy Ground;’ which had been -considered by them inaccessible to their enemies, and the ‘Grave of White -Men.’ But it proved a fatal delusion. His party suffered great loss of -warriors, and all the provisions, munitions of war, &c., deposited at -this place of imaginary security; being, as they supposed, rendered -secure by the protecting influence of some supernatural agency. - -It is stated, that—after being sated with the blood of Americans, and -witnessing the almost total extinction of his warriors—he voluntarily and -dauntlessly flung himself into the hands of General Jackson, and demanded -his protection. He is said, on surrendering himself, to have made the -following speech to the General—which looks very little like claiming -_protection_. It displays a spirit, which would have done credit to -Napoleon, under similar circumstances, after the battle of Waterloo: - -“I am in your power: do with me what you please. I am a soldier. I have -done the white people all the harm I could. I have fought them, and -fought them bravely. If I had an army, I would yet fight, and contend to -the last. But I have done—my people are all gone—I can do no more than -weep over the misfortunes of my nation. Once I could animate my warriors -to battle: but I cannot animate the dead. My warriors can no longer hear -my voice—their bones are at Talladega, Tallaschatchee, Emuckfaw, and -Tohopeka. I have not surrendered myself thoughtlessly. Whilst there were -chances of success, I never left my post, nor supplicated peace. But my -people are gone, and I now ask it for my nation, and for myself. - -“On the miseries and misfortunes brought upon my country, I look back -with the deepest sorrow, and wish to avert still greater calamities. If I -had been left to contend with the Georgian army, I would have raised my -corn on one bank of the river, and have fought them on the other. But -your people have destroyed my nation. You are a brave man. I rely upon -your generosity. You will exact no terms of a conquered people, but such -as they should accede to. Whatever they may be, it would now be madness -and folly to oppose them. If they are opposed, you shall find me among -the sternest enforcers of obedience. Those who would still hold out, can -be influenced only by a mean spirit of revenge; and, to this, they must -not, and _shall not_, sacrifice the last remnant of their country. You -have told us, where we might go, and be safe. This is a good talk, and my -nation ought to listen to it. _They SHALL listen to it._”[3] - - - - -INDIAN CHARACTER. - - -A striking display of Indian character occurred some years since in a -town in Maine. An Indian of the Kennebeck tribe remarkable for his good -conduct, received a grant of land from the state, and fixed himself -in a new township, where a number of families settled. Though not ill -treated, yet the common prejudice against Indians prevented any sympathy -with him. This was shown at the death of his only child, when none of -the people came near him. Shortly afterwards he went to some of the -inhabitants, and said to them. _When white man’s child die—Indian man -be sorry—he help bury him—when my child die—no one speak to me—I make -his grave alone—I cant no live here._—He gave up his farm, _dug up the -body of his child_ and carried it with him two hundred miles through the -forest, to join the Canada Indians. What energy and depth of feeling does -this specimen of Indian character exhibit! - - - - -AN INDIAN BEAU. - - -A young Indian warrior is, notoriously, the most thoroughgoing beau -in the world. Bond-street and Broadway furnish no subjects that will -undergo as much crimping and confinement, to appear in full dress. We are -confident that we have observed such a character constantly occupied with -his paints and his pocket-glass, three full hours, laying on his colours, -and adjusting his tresses, and contemplating, from time to time, with -visible satisfaction, the progress of his growing attractions. When he -has finished, the proud triumph of irresistible charms is in his eye. The -chiefs and warriors, in full dress, have one, two, or three broad clasps -of silver about their arms; generally jewels in their ears, and often -in their noses; and nothing is more common than to see a thin circular -piece of silver, of the size of a dollar, depending from their nose, a -little below the upper lip. Nothing shows more clearly the influence of -fashion. This ornament—so painfully inconvenient, as it evidently is to -them, and so horribly ugly and disfiguring—seems to be the utmost finish -of Indian taste. Porcupine quills, stained of different colours, are -twisted in their hair. Tails of animals hang from their hair behind. A -necklace of bears’ or alligators’ teeth, or claws of the bald eagle, -hangs loosely down; and an interior and smaller circle of large red -beads, or in default of them, a rosary of red hawthorn berries, surrounds -the neck. From the knees to the feet, the legs are decorated with great -numbers of little perforated cylindrical pieces of silver or brass, that -emit a simultaneous tinkle as the person walks. If, to all this, he add -an American hat, and a soldier’s coat, of blue, faced with red, over the -customary calico shirt of the gaudiest colours that can be found, he -lifts his feet high, and steps firmly on the ground, to give his tinklers -a uniform and full sound; and apparently considers his person with as -much complacency as the human bosom can be supposed to feel. This is a -very curtailed view of an Indian beau; but every reader, competent to -judge, will admit its fidelity, as far as it goes, to the description of -a young Indian warrior over the whole Mississippi Valley, when prepared -to take part in a public dance. - - - - -AN INDIAN TOAST. - - -When General Wayne was holding his treaty with the Indians at Greenville, -a young chief sat down at the dinner table, next to the General. This -was not much relished by the _White Chief_; but he did not wish to give -open offence to his _Red Brother_. The cloth being removed, the wine -began to circulate; when Wayne—thinking to confound and abash the young -chief—asked him for a _toast_. This being interpreted and explained to -this son of the forest, he filled his tumbler with wine, and gave ‘_The -Great Spirit_’—and after an impressive pause, pressing his hand on his -breast—he added, “_Because he put it into the heart of man to make such -good liquor!_” - - - - -SHREWDNESS. - - - “_He that delivereth it unto thee hath the greater sin._” - -“I am glad,” said the Rev. Dr. Y⸺s to the chief of the Little Ottowas, -“that you do not drink whiskey. But it grieves me to find that your -people use so much of it.” “Ah, yes,” replied the Indian,—and he fixed an -arch and impressive eye upon the Doctor, which communicated the reproof -before he uttered it—“we Indians _use_ a great deal of whiskey, but we do -not _make_ it.” - - - - -LANGUAGE BY SIGNS. - - -It is pretty well ascertained that there exists among mankind a universal -language of signs, taught by nature herself. Voyagers have always used -these signs among savage and previously undiscovered nations. They are -always understood, and invariably form the basis of intercourse. The -former director of the Hartford Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb, informed -the writer, that all the mutes who came to that institution from -different parts of the country, brought with them signs and motions which -were essentially the same, and which coincided with those used in the -institution. This proves that they are _natural_. - -Andrew Ellicott, Esq., commissioned by the United States to determine, -in conjunction with the Commissioners of Spain, a line of demarcation -between the territories of both nations,—related to the writer a curious -trait in the savage character. - -On his way down the Mississippi, a number of strange Indians came -into his camp, from the west side of the river. A Mr. Nolin happened -to be there at the time,—well known for his enterprize and skill in -catching wild horses in the Internal Provinces of Spanish America. He -addressed them in such of the languages as he was acquainted with—but -was not understood. He then conversed by certain signs. These were -understood by the Indians, and were answered in like manner. Thus (if the -expression may be allowed) a conversation ensued, in which not a word was -spoken:—“and this,” said Nolin, “is a sort of universal language common -to the Western tribes.”—(_See Major Long’s Expedition._) - - - - -LOGAN. - - -This celebrated Indian chief, who had always been a zealous friend of -the English, and had often distinguished himself in their service, was -taken prisoner, and brought before the General Assembly of Virginia, -who hesitated whether he should be tried by court martial as a soldier, -or at the criminal bar for high treason. Logan stated that they had -no jurisdiction to try him; that he owed no allegiance to the King of -England, being an Indian Chief, independent of every nation. In answer to -their inquiries as to his motives for taking up arms against the English, -he thus addressed the Assembly. “I appeal to any white man, to say if -ever he entered Logan’s cabin hungry, and I gave him not meat; if ever he -came cold or naked, and I gave him not clothing. During the last long and -bloody war, Logan remained idle in his tent, an advocate for peace; nay -such was my love for the whites, that those of my country pointed at me, -as they passed by, and said, ‘Logan is the friend of white men.’ I had -ever thought to live with you but for the injuries of one man. Colonel -Cressap, the last spring, in cold blood, and unprovoked, cut off all the -relations of Logan, not sparing even my women and children. There runs -not a drop of my blood in the veins of any human creature. This called -on me for revenge. I have sought it. I have killed many. I have fully -glutted my vengeance. For my country, I rejoice at the beams of peace. -But do not harbor the thought that mine is the joy of fear. Logan never -felt fear. He will not turn his heel to save his life. Who is there to -mourn for Logan? Not one!” - -This pathetic speech touched the sensibility of all who heard it. The -General Assembly applauded his noble sentiments, and immediately set him -at liberty. The inhabitants of Virginia vied with each other who should -entertain him the best, or show him the greatest respect; and he returned -to his native country loaded with presents and honors. - - - - -THE INDIAN’S VIEWS OF THE TRINITY. - - -Elliot had been lecturing on the doctrine of the trinity, when one of -his auditors, after a long and thoughtful pause, thus addressed him. ‘I -believe, Mr. Minister, I understand you. The trinity is just like water -and ice and snow. The water is one, the ice is another, and the snow is -another; and yet they are all one water.’ - - - - -MORE ROOM. - - -When General Lincoln went to make peace with the Creek Indians, one of -the chiefs asked him to sit down on a log; he was then desired to move, -and in a few minutes to move still farther; the request was repeated till -the General got to the end of the log. The Indian said, ‘Move farther.’ -To which the General replied, ‘I can move no farther.’ ‘Just so it is -with us,’ said the chief; ‘you have moved us back to the water, and then -ask us to move farther.’ - - - - -INDIAN MENDACITY. - - -Of all the vices incident to the aborigines of this country, from their -intercourse with the whites, that of lying is, probably, not among the -least. Some years anterior to the independence of the United States, -one Tom Hyde, an Indian famous for his cunning, went into a tavern in -Brookfield, Massachusetts, and after a little chat told the landlord he -had been hunting, and had killed a fine fat deer, and if he would give -him a quart of rum he would tell him where it was. Mine host, unwilling -to let slip so good an opportunity of obtaining venison, immediately -struck the bargain and measured the Indian his quart of rum, at the same -time asking where the deer was to be found. ‘Well,’ says Tom, ‘do you -know where the great meadow is?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Well, do you know the great -marked maple tree that stands in it?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘Well, there lies the deer.’ -Away posted the landlord with his team, in quest of his purchase. He -found the meadow and the tree, it is true; but all his searching after -the deer was fruitless, and he returned home no heavier than he went, -except in mortification and disappointment. Some days after, mine host -met the Indian, and feeling indignant at the deception practised on him, -accused him in no gentle terms of the trick. Tom heard him out—and, with -the coolness of a stoic, replied—‘Did you not find the meadow, as I -said?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And the tree?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And the deer?’ ‘No.’ ‘Very good,’ -continued he, ‘you found _two truths for one lie, which is very well for -an Indian_.’ - - - - -CANONICUS. - - -Mr. Drake, in his Book of the Indians, thus mentions Canonicus, the -sachem of the Narragansets:— - -He was contemporary with Miantunnomoh, who was his nephew. We know not -the time of his birth, but a son of his was at Boston in 1631, the next -year after it was settled. But the time of his death is minutely recorded -by Governor Winthrop, in his “Journal,” thus: “June 4, 1647, Canonicus, -the great sachem of Narraganset, died, a very old man.” He is generally -supposed to have been about 85 years of age when he died. - -He is mentioned with great respect by Rev. Roger Williams, in the year -1654. After observing that many hundreds of the English were witnesses -to the friendly disposition of the Narragansets, he says, “their late -famous long-lived Canonicus so lived and died, and in the same most -honourable manner and solemnity, (in their way,) as you laid to sleep -your prudent peace-maker, Mr. Winthrop, did they honour this their -prudent and peaceable prince; yea, through all their towns and countries -how frequently do many, and oft times our Englishmen, travel alone with -safety and loving kindness?” - - - - -ESQUIMAUX INDIANS. - - - Captain Ross, in the Journal of his Arctic Expedition, - gives the following account of his first interview with the - Esquimaux, in the northern parts of Baffin’s Bay: - -“These Esquimaux,” says he, “conceived the _ships to be living and -flying creatures_.” ... “I had been employed, with a good telescope, in -observing their motions, and beheld the first man approach, with every -mark of fear and distrust—looking frequently behind to the other two, -and beckoning them to come on, as if for support. They occasionally -retreated, then advanced again, with cautious steps, in the attitude of -listening; generally keeping one hand down by their knees, in readiness -to pull out a knife, which they had in their boots: in the other hand -they held their whips, with the lash coiled up: their sledges remained -at a little distance—the fourth man being apparently stationed to keep -them in readiness for escape. Sometimes they drew back the covering they -had on their heads, as if wishing to catch the most distant sounds: at -which time I could discern their features, displaying extreme terror and -amazement, while every limb appeared to tremble as they moved.” They were -requested to cross a chasm, which separated them from the interpreter, by -a plank; but “appeared still much alarmed, and requested that Sackhouse -(the interpreter) only should come over. He accordingly passed to the -opposite side, on which they earnestly beseeched him not to touch them, -as, if he did, _they should certainly die_. After he had used many -arguments to persuade them that he was flesh and blood, the native, who -had shown most courage, ventured to touch his hand; then, pulling himself -by the nose, set up a shout, in which he was joined by Sackhouse and -the other three. The presents were then distributed, consisting of two -or three articles of clothing, and a few strings of beads. After which, -Sackhouse exchanged his knife for one of theirs.” - -Captain Ross and Lieutenant Parry then went on the ice, and, “by the time -they reached it, the whole were assembled: those who had originally been -left at a distance, with their sledges, having driven up to join their -comrades. The party now, therefore, consisted of eight natives, with all -their sledges, and about fifty dogs, two sailors, Sackhouse, Lieutenant -Parry, and myself—forming a group of no small singularity, not a little -increased, also, by the peculiarity of the situation on a field of ice, -far from the land. The noise and clamour may be easily conceived—the -whole talking and shouting together, and the dogs howling, while the -natives were flogging them with their long whips, to preserve order. -Our arrival produced considerable alarm, causing them to retreat a few -steps towards their sledges. On this, Sackhouse called to us to _pull our -noses_, as he had discovered this to be the mode of friendly salutation -among them. This ceremony was accordingly performed by each of us, the -natives, during their retreat, making use of the same gesture; the nature -of which we had not before understood.” Presents were then made, and, “on -seeing their faces in the glasses, their astonishment appeared extreme, -and they looked round in silence, for a moment, at each other, and at -us. Immediately afterwards, they set up a general shout, succeeded by a -loud laugh, expressive of extreme delight as well as surprise—in which we -joined, partly from inability to avoid it, and willing also to show that -we were pleased with our new acquaintances.” Confidence shortly after -became established, and uncovering of heads was substituted for pulling -of noses—the natives appearing to comprehend the nature of this ceremony -more quickly than the seamen did the other, and probably not considering -it a much more reasonable, although a more inconvenient, testimony -of respect. They were then invited to the ship, to which one of them -thought proper to _address a speech_, “_pausing between every question, -and pulling his nose with the utmost solemnity_.” All the wonder to be -expected was here excited; but the quantity of the wood and iron appeared -to be the chief objects of surprise. - -“Their knowledge of wood seemed to be limited to some heath of a dwarfish -growth, with stems no thicker than the finger; and, accordingly, they -knew not what to think of the timber they saw on board. Not being aware -of its weight, two or three of them, successively, seized on the spare -topmast, evidently with the view of carrying it off; and, as soon as they -became familiar with the people around them, they showed that desire -of possessing what they admired, which is so universal among savages. -The only thing they looked upon with contempt, was a little terrier -dog;—judging, no doubt, that it was too small for drawing a sledge. But -they shrunk back, as if in terror, from a pig, whose pricked ears and -ferocious aspect (being of the Shetland breed) presented a somewhat -formidable appearance. This animal happening to grunt, one of them was -so terrified, that he became, from that moment, uneasy, and appeared -impatient to get out of the ship. In carrying his purpose into effect, -however, he did not lose his propensity to thieving, as he seized and -endeavoured to carry off the smith’s anvil: finding that he could not -remove it, he laid hold of the large hammer, threw it on the ice, and -following it himself, deliberately set it on his sledge, and made off.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -A CHOCTAW COUNCIL. - - -The conduct of the government of the United States towards the Indian -tribes, however politic it may seem, is certainly not based upon the -Christian precept “to do unto others as we would that they should do -unto us.” All our proceedings towards them have tended to their gradual -extirpation from the land of their birth. Our wars, our treaties, our -purchases of land, our system of intercourse with them, have all the same -end. The following extract will show how well the Indians understand this. - -The reader will recollect, that it has become the settled policy of the -United States to remove the several tribes of Indians to a country west -of the Mississippi. In order to discuss and determine on this subject, in -1830 the Choctaw Indians held a council, in which it was resolved to sell -off their lands to the United States, for one million of dollars, and to -remove without the States, provided Government would give to each man a -section of land, in fee simple, west of the Mississippi, and be at the -expense of transporting the tribe to their place of destination, and of -supporting them twelve months after their arrival. The council sat four -days, and the following is a short sketch of their proceedings:— - -The National Council was organized in the afternoon of the 15th of -March. This was a juncture of peculiar interest. To see the rulers of -a people, preparing to decide upon a course in which their posterity, -to the latest generation, was deeply affected, could not but produce a -deep and universal solemnity, and this interest was greatly increased -by the bitter tears shed by some of the females present. The voice of -sorrow is always eloquent; but, at such a season, never could the female -voice speak more forcibly the sympathies of our nature. Who could avoid -exclaiming, ‘O, my native country! Land of my fathers, I must leave thee!’ - -The Chief presented them with a concise view of the difficulties of -their situation, and the alternatives which were before them, and the -sad necessity of immediately making their selection. It was at the -intimation, that a removal was one of the alternatives, that the women -wept. - -The Chief was followed by an old Captain in the nation, who, in brief -simplicity, recounted his sufferings as a warrior and captain, in -fighting for his White brothers, under General Jackson. He named several -places where he had fought, and seen the Choctaws bleed and die. At that -time, little did he think that his White brothers would ever make it -necessary for him, in his old age, to leave his country, and the bones of -his father. He would greatly prefer giving up his country, than submit to -laws, the nature of which he could not learn, and among a people, the -wicked part of whom would harass and ruin them. He expressed a belief -that the President would give them a good treaty; and, if he would do so, -aged as he was, he would give his voice to go to their lands west of the -Mississippi—and, moreover, expressed his belief, that the Great Father -above, would go with them, and bless them in their new home. - -A Captain of the eastern part of the nation, next came forward. He -appeared many years in advance of the first speaker. His white head, -palsied limbs, and tremulous voice, made him an object of deepest -interest. He was said to have been a warrior under General Wayne. He -recounted some of the scenes of his past life, and the hopes which had -borne him onward in his course;—he touched upon the disappointment that -had clouded his setting sun; but, awakening, as if by supernatural -power, he spoke boldly of his confidence in his GREAT FATHER above, and -expressed his full assurance, that HE would accompany his nation, and -bless them. The discussion continued until a late hour of the fourth day, -when the vote was taken, and found in favour of emigration. - -[Illustration: Indians Shooting their Prisoners.] - - - - -THE YOUNG INDIAN CHIEF.[4] - - -This young warrior, of fine size, figure and countenance, is now about -25 years old. At the age of 21 his heroic deeds had acquired for him in -his nation the rank of “bravest of the brave.” The savage practice of -torturing and burning to death their prisoners existed in this nation. An -unfortunate female taken in war, of the Paduca nation, was destined to -this horrible death. The fatal hour had arrived, the trembling victim, -far from her home and her friends, was fastened to the stake; the whole -tribe was assembled on the surrounding plain to witness the awful scene. -Just when the fire was about to be kindled, and the spectators on the -tiptoe of expectation, this young warrior, who sat composedly among the -chiefs, having before prepared two fleet horses, with the necessary -provisions, sprung from his seat, rushed through the crowd, loosed the -victim, seized her in his arms, placed her on one of the horses, mounted -the other himself, and made the utmost speed towards the nation and -friends of the captive. The multitude, dumb and nerveless with amazement -at the daring deed, made no effort to rescue their victim from her -deliverer. They viewed it as an act of the Great Spirit, submitted to it -without a murmur, and quietly returned to their village. The released -captive was accompanied through the wilderness towards her home, till she -was out of danger. He then gave her the horse on which she rode, with the -necessary provisions for the remainder of the journey, and they parted. -On his return to the village, such was the respect entertained for him, -that no inquiry was made into his conduct; no censure was passed on it, -and since the transaction, no human sacrifice has been offered in this or -any other of the Pawnee tribes. Of what influence is one bold act in a -good cause! - -On the publication of this anecdote at Washington, the young ladies of -Miss White’s Seminary, in that city, presented that brave and humane -Indian with a handsome silver medal, on which was engraven an appropriate -inscription, accompanied by an address, of which the following is the -close:—“Brother, accept this token of our esteem; always wear it for our -sake; and when you have again the power to save a poor woman from death -and torture, think of this, and of us, and fly to her rescue.” - - - - -RED JACKET. - - -It happened during the Revolutionary war, that a treaty was held with the -Indians, at which La Fayette was present. The object was to unite the -various tribes in amity with America. The majority of the Chiefs were -friendly, but there was much opposition made to it, more especially by a -young warrior, who declared that when an alliance was entered into with -America, he should consider the sun of his country as set forever. In his -travels through the Indian country, when lately in America, it happened -at a large assemblage of Chiefs, that La Fayette referred to the treaty -in question, and turning to Red Jacket, said, “pray tell me if you can, -what has become of that daring youth, who so decidedly opposed all our -propositions for peace and amity? Does he still live—and what is his -condition?” “I, myself, am the man,” replied Red Jacket, “the decided -enemy of the Americans, as long as the hope of opposing them with success -remained but now their true and faithful ally until death.” - - - - -INDIAN MODE OF GETTING A WIFE. - - -An aged Indian, who for many years had spent much of his time among -the white people both in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, one day, about -the year 1770, observed, that the Indians had not only a much easier -way of getting a wife than the whites, but were also more certain of -getting a _good_ one; ‘for’ (said he in his broken English) ‘white man -court—court—may be one whole year!—may be two before he marry!—well!—may -be then get _very good_ wife—but, may be _not_—may be _very_ cross! Well -now, suppose cross! Scold so soon at get awake in the morning! Scold -all day! Scold until sleep!—all one; he must keep _him_! White people -have law forbidding throwing away wife, be _he_ ever so cross! must keep -_him_ always! Well? how does Indian do? Indian when he see industrious -squaw, which he like, he go to _him_, place his two fore-fingers close -aside each other, make two look like one—look squaw in the face—see _him_ -smile—which is all one _he_ say, yes! so he take _him_ home—no danger -_he_ be cross! no! no! Squaw know too well what Indian do if _he_ be -cross!—throw _him_ away and take another! Squaw love to eat meat! no -husband! no meat! Squaw do every thing to please husband; he do the same -to please squaw! live happy!’ - -[Illustration] - - - - -SHENANDOH, THE ONEIDA CHIEF. - - -Although the dignity of a chief is hereditary in his family, generally, -the aristocracy of the Indians is not one of birth merely, nor one of -wealth; but it is an aristocracy of merit. A chief is liable to be -deposed for misconduct; and a brave warrior takes his place on account -of the actions he has performed. Among those who have maintained an -ascendancy among their countrymen by the force of individual merit, none -is more remarkable than Shenandoh, the Oneida chief. - -This celebrated chief, whose life measured a century, died in 1816. -He was well known in the wars which occurred while the United States -were British colonies; and, also, in the war of the Revolution—as the -undeviating friend of the Americans. - -In his youth he was very savage, and addicted to drunkenness; but, by the -force of reflection, and the benevolent exhortations of a missionary to -the tribe, he lived a reformed man for more than sixty years, and died in -Christian hope.[5] - -Shenandoh’s person was tall and muscular but well made—his countenance -was intelligent, and beamed with all the ingenuous dignity of an Indian -Chief. In youth, he was brave and intrepid—in his riper years, one of -the ablest counsellors among the North American tribes. He possessed a -strong and vigorous mind; and, though terrible as the tornado in war—he -was bland and mild as the zephyr in peace. With the cunning of the fox, -the hungry perseverance of the wolf, and the agility of the mountain cat, -he watched and repelled Canadian invasions. His vigilance once preserved -from massacre the inhabitants of the then infant settlements of the -German Flats. His influence brought his tribe to assist the Americans, in -their war of the Revolution. His many friendly actions in their behalf, -gained for him, among the Indian tribes, the appellation of the ‘_White -Man’s Friend_.’ - -To a friend who called to see him, in his wane (he was then blind), he -thus expressed himself: - -“I am an aged hemlock—the winds of a hundred winters have whistled -through my branches—I am dead at the top. The generation to which I -belonged have run away and left me. Why _I_ live, the Great Spirit alone -knows! Pray to my Jesus that I may have patience to wait for my appointed -time to die.” - - ‘Indulge my native land; indulge the tear - That steals impassioned o’er the nation’s doom: - To me each twig from Adam’s stock is near, - And sorrows fall upon an Indian’s tomb.’ - - - - -INDIAN GRATITUDE AND WIT. - - -Soon after Litchfield began to be settled by the English, an unknown -Indian came into the inn at dusk, and requested the hostess to furnish -him with food and drink; stating, that he had had no success in hunting, -and could not pay till he had better fortune. The woman refused; -calling him a lazy, drunken, good-for-nothing fellow. A man who sat by, -noticed the Indian as he turned away from the inhospitable place, and -perceiving that he was suffering very severely from want and weariness, -he generously ordered the hostess to furnish him with a good supper, -and call on him for payment. After the Indian had finished his meal, -he thanked his benefactor again and again, and assured him he should -never forget his kindness, and would, if it were ever in his power, -faithfully recompense it. He observed, that he had one more favor to ask; -if the woman was willing, he wished to tell a story. The hostess, whose -good nature had been restored by money, readily consented. The Indian, -addressing his benefactor, said, “I suppose you read the Bible?” The man -assented. “Well, the Bible says, God make the world; and then he took -him, and looked on him, and say ‘all very good.’ Then he made light; and -took him, and looked on him, and say, ‘all very good.’ Then he made land -and water, sun and moon, grass and trees; and he took him, and looked -on him, and say, ‘all very good.’ Then he made beasts, and birds, and -fishes; and he took him, and looked on him, and say, ‘all very good.’ -Then he made man; and took him, and looked on him, and say, ‘all very -good.’ Then he made woman; and took him, and looked at him, and——he no -dare say one such word.” - -Many years after this, the Indian’s benefactor was taken prisoner by an -Indian scout, and carried into Canada. He was saved from death by one -of the tribe, who asked leave to adopt him in the place of a son, who -had fallen in battle. Through the winter, he experienced the customary -effects of savage hospitality. The following summer as he was at work -in the forest alone, an unknown Indian came to him and appointed a -meeting at a certain place, on a given day. The prisoner consented; -but afterwards, fearing mischief might be intended, he neglected the -engagement. The Indian again sought him, reproved him for his want of -confidence in him, and assured him the meeting would be for his good. -Encouraged by his apparent friendship, the man followed his directions. -He found the Indian provided with muskets, ammunition, and knapsacks. -The Indian ordered him to arm himself and follow him. Their course was -towards the south, and day after day the Englishman followed, without -being able to conjecture the motives of his guide. After a tedious -journey, he arrived at the top of an eminence, commanding a view of a -country somewhat cultivated and populous. “Do you know that country?” -said the Indian, with an arch smile. “Oh, yes! it is Litchfield,” replied -the white man, as he cordially pressed his hand. “Many years ago, you -give weary Indian supper there,” said he. “He promise to pay you, and he -pay you now. Go home, and be happy.” - - - - -HEAD WORK. - - -Colonel Dudley, governor of Massachusetts, in the beginning of the last -century, had a number of workmen employed in building him a house on -his plantation; and one day as he was looking at them, he observed a -stout Indian, who, though the weather was very cold, was a naked as well -as an idle spectator. ‘Hark ye, friend,’ said the governor, ‘why don’t -you work like these men, and get clothes to cover you?’ ‘And why you no -work, governor?’ replied the Indian. ‘I work,’ answered the governor, -putting his finger on his forehead, ‘with my head, and therefore need not -work with my hands.’ ‘Well,’ replied the Indian, ‘and if I would work, -what have you for me to do?’ ‘Go kill me a calf,’ said the governor, -‘and I will give you a shilling.’ The Indian did so. The governor asked -him why he did not skin and dress it. ‘Calf dead, governor—give me my -shilling; give me another,’ said the Indian, ‘and I will skin and dress -it.’ This was complied with. The Indian then went to a tavern with his -two shillings, and soon spending one for rum, returned to the governor, -saying, ‘Your shilling bad, the man no take it.’ The governor believing -him, gave him another; but soon returning in the same manner, with the -second, the governor discerned his roguery; however, he exchanged that -also, reserving his resentment for a proper opportunity. To be prepared -for it, the governor wrote a letter directed to the keeper of Bridewell, -in Boston, requesting him to take the bearer and give him a sound -whipping. This he kept in his pocket, and in the course of a few days the -Indian came again to stare at the workmen; the governor took no notice -of him for some time, but at length taking the letter out of his pocket, -and calling the Indian to him, said, ‘I will give you half a crown if you -will carry this letter to Boston.’ The Indian closed with his proposal, -and set out on his journey. He had not gone far, before he met with -another Indian in the employ of the governor, to whom he gave the letter, -and told him that the governor had sent him to meet him, and to bid him -return with that letter to Boston, as soon as he possibly could. - -The poor fellow carried it with great diligence, and received a severe -flogging for his pains; at the news of which, the governor was not a -little astonished on his return. The other Indian came no more; but, -after the lapse of some months, at a meeting with some of his nation, the -governor saw him there among the rest, and asked him how he durst serve -him such a trick? The Indian looking him full in the face, and putting -his forefinger to his forehead, replied, ‘_Head work! governor, head -work!_’ - - - - -MAGNANIMITY AND DISINTERESTED GENEROSITY: WITH STRIKING TRAITS IN THE -SAVAGE CHARACTER. - - -The Pawnee Loups (Wolf Pawnees) a tribe of Missouri savages, lately -exhibited the anomaly among the American aborigines of a people addicted -to the superstitious rite of offering human victims, in propitiation of -‘_Venus, the Great Star_.’ The inhuman ceremony was annually performed at -the period immediately preceding their horticultural operations, in order -to insure a bountiful return from the earth:—the neglect of which duty, -it was believed, would occasion a total failure of crops. To obviate, -therefore, a national calamity so formidable, any person was at liberty -to offer up a prisoner, of either sex, whom the fortune of war had placed -in his power. - -The devoted individual was clad in the gayest attire, pampered with a -profusion of the choicest food, and constantly attended by the conjurers, -alias priests, who anticipated all his wants—cautiously concealed from -him the real object of their sedulous attentions—and endeavoured to -preserve his mind in a state of cheerful composure:—with the view of -promoting obesity, and thus rendering the sacrifice more acceptable to -their Ceres. - -When the victim was sufficiently fattened, a day was appointed for the -sacrifice, that all might attend the celebration. In the presence of -the assembled multitude, he was bound to a cross; a solemn dance was -performed; and, after certain ceremonies, the warrior who had captured -him, cleft his head with a tomahawk; and, at the same moment, numerous -arrows were discharged at the body. - -It appears, this barbarous rite has lately been abolished. _Latelesha_, -or Knife Chief, principal of the nation, having long regarded this -sacrifice as cruel and unnecessary, had vainly endeavoured to wean his -countrymen from the observance of it. At length an Iotan woman, brought -captive into the village, was doomed to the Great Star. Having undergone -the necessary treatment, she was bound to the cross. At this critical -juncture, _Petalesharoo_, son of _Latelesha_, stepped forward, and -declared, that it was his father’s wish to abolish a custom so inhuman; -that, for his part, he was determined to release the victim, at the risk -of his life. He now cut the cords that bound her, carried her swiftly -through the crowd, and placed her on a horse; mounted another himself, -and conveyed her beyond the reach of pursuit. - -Notwithstanding the success of this enterprise, it was reserved for -another display of the firmness of this young warrior, to abolish the -sanguinary sacrifice—we hope for ever. The succeeding spring, a Spanish -boy was captured, and confided, by the warrior who took him, to the -priests, to undergo the usual preparation for sacrifice. The Knife Chief -consulted with his son how to avoid the repetition of the horrible rite. -“_I_ will rescue the boy,” said _Petalesharoo_, “as a warrior ought—by -force.” But the father, unwilling that his son should again expose -himself to imminent danger, devised other means for rescuing the devoted -victim:—that is, by ransom. For this purpose he repaired to a Mr. Pappon, -then trading in the village, who generously contributed a quantity of -merchandize. Other contributions were added by the Knife Chief himself, -and by Petalesharoo, and other Indians. The whole was laid up in a heap, -in the Chieftain’s lodge, and the warrior was summoned to attend. - -Latelesha, armed with his war-club, commanded the warrior to accept of -the merchandize, as a ransom for the boy, or prepare for instant death. -The warrior refused to comply: the chief flourished his club in the air. -“Strike!” said Petalesharoo, “I will meet the vengeance of his friends.” -But the more politic Chief preferred adding to the mass of merchandize -a few more articles, in order to give the warrior another opportunity -of complying, without breaking his word. The expedient succeeded. The -goods were reluctantly accepted; the boy was liberated, and afterwards -conducted to St. Louis by the traders. The merchandize was sacrificed in -his place: the cloth was cut in shreds, and suspended on poles, and many -of the valuables were consumed by fire, to appease and propitiate the -Indian Ceres. - -[Illustration] - - - - -TECUMSEH, WHEN A YOUTH. - - -Tecumseh was one of the most remarkable men that has ever figured in -our aboriginal history. He gained an ascendancy over the minds of his -countrymen entirely by the commanding force of his character, and the -persuasive power of his eloquence. These instruments enabled him to -produce a degree of union and combination among the North-western tribes, -by no means less remarkable than the confederacies which signalized the -times of king Philip and of Pontiac. His brother, the prophet, was a -pusillanimous driveller, compared with Tecumseh; and exerted all his -influence by addressing the superstitious fears of his countrymen; -whereas the great warrior addressed himself to the higher principles of -their nature, and made successful appeals to their reason, and even to -their humanity. Of the last we have a signal example in his arresting the -massacre of the American prisoners at Fort Meigs. - -It has somewhere been observed, that “every circumstance relating to -this extraordinary man will be read with interest.” We believe it, and -therefore proceed with the following account, which appeared in a western -periodical of 1826. - -“About thirty years ago (as the writer received the narrative from -Captain Thomas Bryan, of Kentucky) the said Bryan was employed as a -surveyor of the Virginia Military Lands, northwest of the Ohio river. -While engaged in completing a chain of surveys, extending from the head -waters of Brush Creek to those of Paint Creek (now the central part of -the State of Ohio), his provisions became scant, and at length entirely -exhausted. He directed his hunter—who had been unsuccessful on a recent -excursion—to make another attempt to procure subsistence, and to meet him -at a particular point then designated; where, after closing the labour of -the day, he should encamp with his chain-men and marker. - -“Towards evening, the men became exhausted with hunger. They were in the -heart of a solitary wilderness, and every circumstance was calculated to -produce the greatest dejection of spirit. After making great exertions to -reach the point designated, where they were to encamp upon their arrival, -they met their hunter, who had been again unsuccessful. Feeling for -himself and his comrades every emotion of a noble heart, he was alarmed -for their situation. The hunter declared he had used every exertion in -pursuit of game, but all his attempts were of no avail; that the whole -forest appeared to him to be entirely destitute both of birds and beasts! -Under these awful apprehensions of starvation, he knew that it would be -a vain attempt to reach the settlement;—he trembled, and shed tears. -Captain Bryan, at this critical juncture, felt his spirits roused at the -reflection of their desperate situation; he thrust his jacob-staff in -the earth, and ordered his men to prepare a camp, and make a good fire; -he seizes the gun and ammunition of the unsuccessful hunter, and darted -forth in pursuit of game. The weather had become exceedingly cold, for -it was in the depth of winter—every rivulet was bound in ice. He had not -proceeded far before he was gratified with the cheering sight of three -elks, making towards him. He succeeded in killing two, and, shortly -after, a bear. He now called for his men, and ordered his game to be -carried to the camp. No one, but those similarly situated, can conceive -the feelings excited on such an occasion. - -“But, perilous as the situation of the surveyor and his party might -appear, there were others who were threatened with the like appalling -distress. Three or four Indians, who had been out on a hunting excursion, -hearing the report of Captain Bryan’s gun, made immediately in that -direction, and had arrived at the camp before Bryan returned. On his -appearance there, they informed him, as well as they could (some of -them speaking a little English), of their wretched situation. They told -him that, for three days, their whole party had subsisted on one skunk, -and that was exhausted. They described the absence of the game, in the -language of the hunter, as if “the whole forest was entirely destitute -both of _birds_ and _beasts_.” They were informed by Captain Bryan, -that he had plenty for himself, his men, and themselves; desired them -to fix their camp, make a good fire, and assist his men in flaying the -bear and elks, which were now brought into camp—and then to cut, carve, -and cook for themselves. Their very looks were expressive of the joy -they now felt for a deliverance so unexpected—nor did they spare the -provisions. Their hunger was such, that, as soon as one round was served, -another—another—and another, in succession—was greedily devoured. - -“A fine-looking, tall, dignified savage, then approached the surveyor’s -camp—rather young in appearance than otherwise. He very gracefully -stepped up to Captain Bryan (who was now reposing in his camp, on account -of rheumatism, occasioned by his recent exposure), and informed him, that -the old man in his camp was a Chief; that he felt under great obligations -to the Great and Good Spirit for so signal an interposition in their -favour; that he was about to make a prayer, and address the Good Spirit, -and thank him: that it was the custom, on such occasions, for the Indians -to stand up in their camp; and that his Chief requested the captain and -his men, to conform, in like manner, by standing up in _their_ camp. The -captain replied, that his men would all conform, and order should be -preserved; but, as for himself, his affliction would compel him to keep -his seat—but this must not be construed into disrespect. The captain -remarked to me, that he was not himself a religious character, though a -man of feeling. - -“The old Chief raised himself upon his feet, as did those around him; -and, lifting up his hands, commenced his prayer and thanksgiving with -an audible voice. And such an address to Deity, on such an occasion—as -far as I could understand him—I never before heard flow from mortal lips! -The tone—the modulation of his voice—the gestures—all corresponded to -make a very deep impression upon us. In the course of his thanksgiving—as -I gathered from the Indians—he recapitulated the doleful situation in -which they were so recently placed—the awful horrors of starvation, -with which they were threatened—the vain attempts they had made to -procure food, until He, the Great and Good Spirit, had sent that good -White man, and had crowned his exertions with success; and so directed -him and them to meet, and to find plenty.” Who can fully describe the -abundant overflowings of a grateful heart? He continued in this vehement -strain for about half an hour, “when,” remarked Captain B., “my own men -reflecting on their own recent situation, retrospecting what had taken -place, and beholding the pious gratitude of a ‘Child of the Forest,’ -feeling the same sensations, they were melted into tenderness—if not into -tears.” - -The person who so gracefully addressed Captain Bryan, in behalf of his -Chief, was TECUMSEH. - - - - -INDIAN LOGIC.[6] - - -A few years since, whilst the mistaken zeal of many good men, led them to -think that their red brethren of the forest might be Christianized before -they were civilized,—a missionary was sent out among them to convert -them to the Christian faith. The missionary was unfortunately one of -those preachers who delight in speculative and abstruse doctrines, and -who teach the inefficacy of all human exertions in obtaining salvation. -He called the Indians together to hear what he called the Gospel. The -Sachem or Chief of the tribe to which he was sent, came with the rest. -The missionary in the course of his sermon, (which was upon the very -simple and intelligible doctrine of _election_) undertook to prove, that -some were made to be saved, and some to be damned, without any regard -to their good or bad conduct. As an illustration of his doctrine, he -cited the case of Jacob and Esau, and attempted to show that God loved -the one and hated the other before either of them was born. The Sachem -heard him attentively, and after meeting invited him to his wigwam. -After some conversation, the Sachem thus addressed the Missionary. -“Sir, me tell you a story: My wife have two boys, twins; both of them -as pretty as the two you tell me about to-day. One of them she love and -feed him; the other she let lie on the ground crying. I tell her take -him up, or he die. She no mind me. Pretty soon he die. Now what shall -I do to her?”—Why, said the Missionary, she ought to be hung!—“Well,” -said the Sachem, “then you go home and hang your God, for you say he do -just so. You no preach any more here, unless you preach more good than -this.” The Missionary finding himself amongst a people too enlightened to -give credence to his narrow and heart-revolting principles, thought it -expedient to seek a new field of labor. - - - - -THE INDIAN AND THE DUTCH CLERGYMAN. - - -A Dutch clergyman in the then province of New York, 1745, asked an -Indian, whom he had baptized, whether he had been in Shekomeko, and had -heard the Moravian missionary preach, and how he liked him? The Indian -answered, ‘That he had been there, and had attended to the missionary’s -words, and liked to hear them; that he would rather hear the missionary -than him, for when the former spoke, it was as though his words laid hold -of his heart, and a voice within said, ‘that is truth;’ but that _he_ was -always playing about the truth, and never came to the point. That he had -no love for their souls, for when he had once baptized them, he let them -run wild, never troubling himself any further about them. That he acted -much worse than one who planted Indian corn; for, added he, ‘the planter -sometimes goes to see whether his corn grows or not.’ - - - - -“INDIAN, WHO IS YOUR CAPTAIN?” - - -An English captain, in the year 1759, who was beating up for recruits in -the neighbourhood of Bethlehem, met one day a Moravian Indian, and asked -him whether ‘he had a mind to be a soldier.’ ‘No,’ answered he, ‘I am -already engaged.’ ‘Who is your captain?’ asked the officer. ‘I have a -very brave and excellent captain,’ replied the Indian, ‘his name is Jesus -Christ; Him will I serve as long as I live: my life is at his disposal;’ -upon which the British officer suffered him to pass unmolested. - - - - -INDIAN BON MOT. - - -One of the Moravian Indians who had been baptized by the name of -Jonathan, meeting some white people, who had entered into so violent a -dispute about baptism and the holy communion, that they at last proceeded -to blows—‘These people,’ said he, ‘know nothing of our Saviour; for they -speak of Him as we do of a strange country.’ - - - - -INDIAN FIDELITY. - - -Some time after the commencement of the Revolutionary war, when the -northern Indians were beginning to make inroads on the people living -on the east side of the Ohio river, General O’Hara having come out to -the upper Moravian town, on the Muskingum, on business and there taken -lodging with a respectable and decent family of Indians in the village—I -had one evening scarcely laid down to sleep when I was suddenly roused -from my bed by an Indian runner, (or messenger) who in the night had been -sent to me, 9 miles, with the following verbal message: “My friend, see -that our friend O’Hara, now at your town, be immediately taken off to the -settlement of white people, avoiding all paths leading to that river. -Fail not in taking my advice, for there is no time to lose—and hear my -son further on the subject.” - -The fact was, that eleven warriors from Sandusky, were far advanced on -their way to take or murder O’Hara; who at break of day would be at this -place for the purpose. I immediately sent for this gentleman, and told -him that I would furnish him with a conductor, on whom he might depend, -and having sent for Anthony, (otherwise called Luke Holland) informed him -of the circumstance and requested his services; he (the Indian) wished -first to know, whether my friend placed _confidence_ in him, and trusted -to his fidelity; which question being answered by O’Hara himself, and to -his full satisfaction; he replied,’well, our lives cannot be separated! -we must stand or fall together! but take courage, for no enemy shall -discover us!’ - -The Indian then took Mr. O’Hara through the woods, and arriving within -a short distance of the Ohio river, pointed out to him a hiding place, -until he, by strolling up and down the river, should discover white -people on the opposite shore; when finally observing a house where two -white men were cleaning out a canoe for use, he hurried back to bring on -his friend, who, when near the spot, advised his Indian conductor to hide -himself, knowing those people to be bad men, he feared they might kill -him, for his services. The Indian finally seeing his friend safe across -the river, returned and made report thereof. - -The young Indian, who had been the bearer of the message from his father -to me, had immediately returned on seeing O’Hara off, in order to play a -further deception on the war party, for the purpose of preventing them -even from going to our town, fearing, that if there, and not finding -their object, they might probably hunt for his track, and finding this, -pursue him. He indeed effected his purpose so completely, that while they -were looking for him in one direction, his conductor was taking him off -in another. - -[Illustration: Indian Friendship.] - -The father of the young lad, who was the principal cause that O’Hara’s -life had been saved, had long been admired by all who knew him for his -_philanthropy_; on account of which the traders had given him the name -of “_the gentleman_.” Otherwise this Indian was not in connection with -the Christian Indian Society, though a friend to them. He lived with his -family retired and in a decent manner. - -While I feel a delight in offering to the relatives and friends of the -deceased, as also to the public, this _true_ and _faithful_ picture of -Indian _fidelity_—I regret that, on necessarily having had to recur -to the names ‘Anthony’ and ‘Luke Holland,’ I am drawn from scenes of -pleasure, to crimes of the _blackest hue_. The very Indian just named, -who at that time joyfully reported to me his having conducted his friend -out of danger, to a place of safety, some years after approached me with -the doleful news that every one of his children, (all minors) together -with his hoary headed parents, _had been murdered by the white people_, -at Gradenhutten, on the Muskingum. - - JOHN HECKELWELDER. - - - - -INDIAN HOSPITALITY. - - -I can give, says Colden, in his history of the five Indian Nations, two -strong instances of the hospitality of the Mohawks, which fell under my -own observation; and which will show, that they have the very same notion -of hospitality which we find in the ancient poets. When I was last in the -Mohawk’s country, the sachems told me that they had an Englishman among -their people, a servant who had run away from his master in New York. I -immediately told them they must deliver him up. ‘No,’ they answered, ‘we -never serve any man so, who puts himself under our protection.’ On this -I insisted on the injury they did thereby to his master: they allowed it -might be an injury, and replied, ‘Though we will never deliver him up, -we are willing to pay the value of the servant to the master.’ Another -man made his escape from the jail in Albany, where he was in prison on -an execution of debt: the Mohawks received him, and, as they protected -him against the sheriff and officers they not only paid the debt for him, -but gave him land over and above, sufficient for a good farm, whereon he -lived when I was last there. - - - - -KINDNESS OF AN INDIAN HUSBAND. - - -There was a famine in the land, and a sick Indian woman expressed a great -desire for a mess of Indian corn. Her husband having heard that a trader -at Lower Sandusky had a little, set off on horseback for that place, one -hundred miles distant, and returned with as much corn as filled the crown -of his hat, for which he gave his horse in exchange, and came home on -foot, bringing his saddle back with him. - - - - -INDIAN RECORDS. - - -At certain seasons the Indians meet to study the meaning, and renew their -ideas of their strings and belts of wampum. On such occasions, they sit -down around the place in which they are deposited, and taking out a -string or belt, one after another, hand them to every person present; -and in order that they may all comprehend its meaning, repeat the words -pronounced on the delivery, in their whole connexion. By these means -they are enabled to remember the promises reciprocally made; and, as -they admit young boys who are related to the chiefs, they become early -acquainted with all their national concerns; and thus the contents of -their wampum documents are transmitted to their posterity. The following -instance may serve to show how well this mode of communication answers -the purpose of refreshing the memory:—A gentleman in Philadelphia, once -gave an Indian a string of wampum, saying, ‘I am your friend, and will -serve you to the utmost of my power.’ Forty years after, the Indian -returned the string, adding, ‘Brother, you gave me this string of wampum, -saying, I am your friend, and will serve you to the utmost of my power.’ -‘I am now aged, infirm, and poor; do now as you promised.’ The gentleman -honourably redeemed his promise, and generously assisted the old Indian. - - - - -BURNING OF BROOKFIELD. - - -It has been remarked, that the history of every incursion of the Indians -into the territory of the whites may be written in the words _surprise_, -_massacre_, _plunder_ and _retreat_. They fall upon the defenceless -village in the dead of night, “as falls the plague on men,” or as the -lightning falls on the forest. No vigilance seems to have been sufficient -effectually to guard against these attacks, and no prudence or foresight -could avert them. The Indians made their approaches to the isolated -villages by creeping cautiously through the surrounding woods in the -dead of night. The outposts were seized, and the sentinels silently -tomahawked, ere the war-whoop roused the sleeping families from their -beds. - -During the early settlements of New England, the inhabitants suffered -much from the incursions of the Indians. The most celebrated war, -perhaps, which ever took place with the natives, however, was King -Philip’s war. During its continuance, the town of Brookfield, -Massachusetts, was attacked. The inhabitants collected in one house which -was immediately besieged by the savages, who set fire instantly to every -other building in the town. For two days and nights the Indians shot upon -the people in the house incessantly, but were met with a most determined -defence on the part of the besieged. They then attempted to fire the -house by flaming torches at the ends of long poles; but the garrison -continued to defend themselves by firing from the windows, and throwing -water upon the flames, as they fortunately had a pump within the house. -These attempts failing, the Indians then prepared a cart loaded with -flax, hemp, and other combustible matters, and under cover of a barricade -of boards, thrust the burning mass, by means of long timbers, against -the house. In this movement one of the wheels came off, which turned -the machine aside, and exposed the Indians to the fire of the garrison; -a shower of rain coming on at the same time extinguished the flames. -Shortly afterwards a reinforcement of forty men arrived from Boston, -forced their way through the enemy, and joined the garrison. The Indians -then abandoned the siege and retired, having suffered a heavy loss. - - - - -THE HEROIC COLLAPISSA. - - -In the heart of the savage, there are some noble and redeeming qualities; -he can be faithful, even unto death, to the friend or the stranger who -has dwelt beneath his roof, or sat under the shadow of the same tree. He -can be generous also; can endure all tortures, rather than show weakness -or fear. - -“An instance of this occurred,” says Bossu, “when the French were in -possession of New Orleans: a Chactaw, speaking very ill of them, said -the Collapissas were their slaves; one of the latter, vexed at such -words, killed him with his gun. The nation of Chactaws, the greatest and -most numerous on the continent, armed immediately, and sent deputies to -New Orleans to ask for the head of the murderer, who had put himself -under the protection of the French. They offered presents to make up the -quarrel, but the cruel people would not accept any! they even threatened -to destroy the village of the Collapissas. To prevent the effusion of -blood, the unhappy Indian was delivered up to them: the Sieur Ferrand -was charged with the commission. The Indian was called Tichou; he stood -upright in the midst of his own people and of his enemies, and said, -“I am a true man, that is, I do not fear death; but I pity the fate of -a wife and four children, whom I leave behind me very young; and of -my father and mother, who are old, and for whom I got subsistence by -hunting.” (He was the best hunter in the nation.) - -He had hardly spoken the last word of this short speech, when his father, -penetrated with his son’s love, rose amidst the people, and spoke as -follows:— - -“It is through courage that my son dies; but, being young and full of -vigour, he is more fit than myself to provide for his mother, wife, and -four little children: it is therefore necessary he should stay on earth -to take care of them. As to myself, I am near the end of my career; I am -no longer fit for anything: I cannot go like the roebuck, whose course -is like the winds, unseen; I cannot sleep like the hare, with my ears -never shut; but I have lived as a man, and will die as such, therefore I -go to take his place.” - -At these words, his wife, his son, his daughter-in-law, and their little -children, shed tears round the brave old man: he embraced them for the -last time. The relations of the dead Chactaw accepted the offer; after -that, he laid himself on the trunk of a tree, and his head was cut off -with one stroke of a hatchet. Every thing was made up by this death; but -the young man was obliged to give them his father’s head: in taking it -up, he said to it, “Pardon me thy death, and remember me in the country -of spirits.” - -All the French who assisted at this event were moved even to tears, and -admired this noble old man. A people among whom such things could be -done, hardly deserved the sweeping censures of Mather and other good -men, who painted them rather as fiends in human shape. Courage is, of -course, the virtue held in most honour: those who run away or desert in -an action are not punished, they are considered as the disgrace of human -nature: the ugliest girls will not accept of them for husbands: they are -obliged to let their hair grow, and to wear an alcoman, or apron, like -the women. “I saw one of them,” says Bossu, who dwelt a long time among -the Indians “who, being ashamed of his figure, went by himself to fight -the Chicachas, for his misery was more than he could bear: for three or -four days he went on creeping like a snake, and hiding himself in the -great grass, without eating or drinking; so he came to their country, and -watched a long time to do some exploit; often lying down in the rushes, -when his enemies came near, and putting out his head above the water -from time to time, to take breath. At last he drew near a village in the -night, cried the cry of death, killed one of the people, and then fled -with the speed of an arrow. He was out three months upon this expedition: -when he drew nigh to his own village, weary, and bearing the head of his -enemy, they came down the hill to meet him. The women were loud in his -praises—the warriors gathered round him; and then they gave him a wife.” - - - - -JOHN ELIOT’S FIRST MISSION TO THE INDIANS. - - -On the 28th of October, 1646, Eliot set out from his home, in Roxbury, -Massachusetts, in company with three friends, to the nearest Indian -settlement: he had previously sent to give this tribe notice of his -coming, and a very large number was collected from all quarters. If -the savages expected the coming of their guest, of whose name they had -often heard, to be like that of a warrior or sachem, they were greatly -deceived. They saw Eliot on foot, drawing near, with his companions; -his translation of the scriptures, like a calumet of peace and love, in -his hand. He was met by their chief, Waubon who conducted him to a large -wigwam. After a short rest, Eliot went into the open air and standing on -a grassy mound, while the people formed around him in all the stillness -of strong surprise and curiosity, he prayed in the English tongue, as if -he could not address heaven in a language both strange and new. And then -he preached for an hour in their own tongue, and gave a clear and simple -account of the religion of Christ, of his character and life, of the -blessed state of those who believed in him. - -Of what avail would it have been to set before this listening people -the terrors of the Almighty, and the doom of the guilty? This wise man -knew, by long experience as a minister, that the heart loves better to -be persuaded than terrified—to be melted than alarmed. The whole career -of the Indian’s life tended to freeze up the finer and softer feelings, -and make the more dark and painful passions familiar to him. He resolved -to strike a new chord, and when he saw the tear stream down their stern -faces, and the haughty head sink low on the breast, as he painted the -ineffable love of Christ, he said it was “a glorious and affecting -spectacle to see a company of perishing forlorn outcasts, so drinking -in the word of salvation.” The impressions this discourse produced, -were of a very favourable nature: as far as the chief, Waubon, was -concerned, they were never effaced. Afterwards the guest passed several -hours conversing with the Indians, and answering their questions. When -night came, he returned to the tent with the chief, and the people -entered their wigwams, or lay down around, and slept on the grass. What -were Eliot’s feelings on this night? At last, the longing of years was -accomplished; the fruit of his prayers was given to him. - -“Could the walls of his loved study speak,” says his friend, “they would -tell of the entreaties poured forth before the Lord, of the days and -nights set apart with fasting—that thus, thus it might be.” A few of the -chiefs’ friends alone remained, after the people were retired. One of the -Christians perceived an Indian, who was hanging down his head, weeping; -the former went to him, and spoke encouraging words, after which he -turned his face to the wall, and wept yet more abundantly: soon after, -he rose and went out. “When they told me of his tears,” said Eliot, “we -resolved to go forth, and follow him into the wood, and speak to him. -The proud Indian’s spirit was quite broken: at last we parted, greatly -rejoicing for such sorrowing.” - -He now resolved to continue his labours; but, on the 26th of November, -when he met the assembly of the Indians for the third time, he found -that, though many of them had constructed wigwams at the place of -meeting, for the more readily attending his ministry, his audience was -not so numerous as on the former occasions. The Powahs (or soothsayers) -had strictly charged the people not to listen to the instructions of the -English, and threatened them with death in case of disobedience. Having -warned his auditors against the impositions of these men, he proceeded to -discourse as formerly, and was heard with the greatest attention. “It is -wonderful,” observed one of his friends, “to see what a little light will -effect, even upon hearts and spirits most incapable.” - -On the night after this third meeting, many were gathered in the tent, -looking earnestly at Eliot, with the solemn gravity and stillness which -these savages affected; when the chief, Waubon, suddenly rose, and began -to instruct all the company out of the things he had heard that day from -Eliot, with the wild and impressive eloquence of the desert. And waking -often that night, he many times was heard speaking to some or other of -his people, of the words of truth and mercy that he had heard. - -Two or three days after these impressions had been made, Eliot saw that -they were likely to be attended with permanent consequences. Wampas, -an intelligent Indian, came with two of his companions to the English, -and desired to be admitted into their families. He brought his son, and -several other children with him, and begged that they might be educated -in the Christian faith: the example quickly spread and all the Indians -who were present at the fourth meeting, on the 9th of December, offered -their children to be instructed. - -The missionary was himself surprised at the success of his first efforts, -as well as at his facility of preaching and conversing in the Indian -tongue; it was the reward of his long and patient application. “To think -of raising,” says Mather, “these hideous creatures unto the elevations -of our holy religion, must argue a more than common or little soul -in the undertaker: could he see any thing angelical to encourage his -labours?—all was diabolical among them.” - -Eliot saw that they must be civilized ere they could be christianized; -that he must make men of them, ere he could hope to see them saints. It -is, no doubt, far easier and more flattering to the soul of the agent, to -see men weep and tremble beneath his word, than to teach them to build, -to plant, to rear the walls and the roof-tree, and sit at their own -hearth-side: this is slow and painful work for a man of lofty mind and -glowing enthusiasm. But in his own words, “he abhorred that he should sit -still, and let that work alone;” and lost no time in addressing himself -to the General Court of the colony, in behalf of those who showed a -willingness to be placed under his care. His application was successful; -and the Indians, having received a grant of land on which they might -build a town, and enjoy the Christian instruction which they desired, met -together, and gave their assent to several laws which he had framed, to -enforce industry and decency—to secure personal and domestic comfort. - -The ground of the town having been marked out, Eliot advised the Indians -to surround it with ditches and a stone wall; gave them instruments -to aid these objects, and such rewards, in money, as induced them to -work hard. It was a strange and novel thing to see these men of the -wilderness, to whom a few months previous all restraint was slavery, -and their lakes and forests dearer than the palaces of kings, submit -cheerfully to this drudgery of bricks and mortar—chief as well as serf; -the very hands that were lately red with slaughter, scooping the earth -at the bidding of Eliot, from morn to night. He soon had the pleasure of -seeing Nonanetum completed. - -The progress of civilization which followed, was remarkable for its -extent and rapidity: the women were taught to spin, and they soon found -something to send to the nearest markets all the year round: in winter -they sold staves, baskets, and poultry; in spring and summer fish, -grapes, strawberries, &c. - -In the mean while, he instructed the men in husbandry, and the more -simple mechanical arts: in hay-time and harvest, he went forth into the -fields with them. All this was not done in a day, for they were neither -so industrious nor so capable of hard labour as those who had been -accustomed to it from early life. - - - - -AN INDIAN FUNERAL AT NONANETUM. - - -At a funeral, on the 7th of October, 1647, a change in the usages and -prejudices of the Indians was evinced in a striking manner. The deceased -was a man of some consequence. Their custom had been to mourn much for -the dead, and to appear overcome with grief, especially when the earth -shrouded them from their sight. The departed was borne to the grave on -a light bier, and interred in a sitting posture; in his hand was placed -a calumet and some tobacco, that he might present the ensigns of peace -to the people of another world. If the corpse was that of a warrior, his -quiver full of arrows, a bow, and a hatchet, were placed by his side, -and also a little mirror, that he might see how his face looked after -passing through the region of death; and a little vermilion to take -away its extreme paleness. His was a bold hand that could at once tear -aside these loved usages, and make the dust of the warrior of no more -consequence than that of the meanest of his followers. The cemetery of -the new town was in the woods, and the procession of all the inhabitants -moved slowly beneath their shadow, in deep and solemn silence, with the -missionary at their head: no wail was heard—no wild gush of sorrow. To -estimate this sacrifice, it is necessary to recur to the Indian belief, -“that after death they should go to a very fertile country, where they -were to have many wives, and, above all, lovely places for hunting:” -often, no doubt, the shadowy chase of the bear and the stag came on the -dreams of the dying man; and afterwards, beautiful women would welcome -him, weary to his home. When the dead was laid in the grave, Eliot read -the funeral service over him, and then told the many people, that in -heaven they neither married nor were given in marriage; that the passions -of this world, the wild chase or the warrior’s joy, could never come -there; _there_ was neither chieftain nor slave; that in the love of -Christ, who was the resurrection and the life, all these things would be -lost. And they believed him—those fierce and brutal men—and wept, not -for the dead, but for themselves; “so that the woods,” says a gentleman -who was present, “rang with their sighs and prayers;” he also adds these -words,—“God was with Eliot, and the sword of his word will pierce deep, -in the hand of the mighty.” His opinion of the mental powers of this -people was not a very low one:—“There is need,” he says, in one of his -letters, “of learning, in ministers who preach to Indians, much more than -to Englishmen and gracious Christians; for these had sundry philosophical -questions, which some knowledge of the arts must help to give answer to, -and without which they would not have been satisfied. Worse than Indian -ignorance hath blinded their eyes, that renounce learning as an enemy -to gospel ministers”. So acute were many of the questions proposed by -the Indians, and so deeply expressive of a gentler and better nature, -that more than one educated stranger was induced to attend regularly the -assemblies of the missionary. - - - - -LOVEWELL’S FIGHT. - - -Captain John Lovewell, of Dunstable, raised a volunteer company and -met with great success. At one time he fell in with an Indian trail -and pursued it till he discovered them asleep on the bank of a pond. -They were all killed, and their scalps, stretched upon hoops, served to -decorate their triumphal return. They, of course, received the bounty, -which amounted to ten pounds. - -(1725.) Lovewell, having augmented his company to 46 men, again set out -with the intention of attacking an Indian town on the Saco. They built a -fort on the Great Ossapy pond, and then proceeded, leaving one of their -number sick, and eight men to guard the fort. - -When about 22 miles from the fort they rested on the banks of a pond, -where they discovered a single Indian at a distance, on a point of land, -and rightly judging that he was attached to a large party of Indians, -Lovewell determined to advance and attack them. Accordingly the whole -company threw off their packs in one place among the brakes; and, to -gain the advantage, the men were spread so as partially to surround the -water. Lovewell had, however, mistaken the position of the Indians, who -were already on his track, and coming to the place where the packs were -deposited, by counting them discovered the number of English to be less -than their own. They, therefore marched to assault the English in the -rear, and actually hemmed them in between the mouth of a brook, a rocky -point, a deep bog, and the pond. The company, completely surrounded, -fought desperately till nightfall, when the Indians, tired of the -conflict, moved off. The number of killed and wounded amounted to 23, -Lovewell being among the former. The remainder of the party returned to -the fort which had been deserted, in consequence of the arrival of one -of Lovewell’s men who fled at the beginning of the fight, and reported -all the rest killed. After resting, they started for home, where they -arrived, to the great joy of their friends, after enduring the severest -hardships. The survivors were liberally compensated, and the widows and -families of the slain were provided for by the government of the province. - - - - -COTTON MATHER’S ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS OF HIS TIME. - - -“These shiftless Indians,” says Mather, “their housing is nothing but a -few mats tied about poles fastened into the earth, where a good fire is -their bed-clothes in the coldest season: their diet has not a greater -dainty; a handful of meal and a spoonful of water being their food for -many days; for they depend on the produce of their hunting and fishing, -and badly cultivated grounds: thus they are subject to long fastings. -They have a cure for some diseases, even a little cave: after they have -terribly heated it, a crew of them go and sit there with the priest, -looking in the heat and smoke like so many fiends, and then they rush -forth on a sudden, and plunge into the water: how they escape death, -instead of getting cured, is marvellous; they are so slothful, that their -poor wives must plant, and build, and beat their corn. All the religion -they have is a belief in many gods, who made the different nations of the -world, but chiefly in one great one of the name of Kicktan, who dwelt in -the south-west regions of the heavens, who created the original parents -of mankind, who, though never seen by the eye of man, was entitled to -their gratitude, that we have in us immortal souls, which, if good, -should go to a splendid entertainment with Kicktan; but, otherwise, must -wander about in a restless horror for ever.” - - - - -THE VALIANT OLD MOHAWK. - - -(1696.) On one occasion, when Count Frontignac succeeded in capturing a -Mohawk fort, it was found deserted of all its inhabitants except a sachem -in extreme old age, who sat with the composure of an ancient Roman in -his capitol, and saluted his civilized compeer in age and infirmity, with -dignified courtesy and venerable address. Every hand was instantly raised -to wound and deface his time-stricken frame and while French and Indian -knives were plunged into his body, he recommended to his Indian enemies -rather to burn him with fire, that he might teach their French allies how -to suffer like men. “Never, perhaps,” says Charlevoix, “was a man treated -with more cruelty; nor ever did any endure it with superior magnanimity -and resolution.” - - - - -OPECHANCANOUGH’S LAST WAR. - - -Opechancanough was by no means backward in taking advantage of the -repose afforded by the treaty of 1632. For the long period which -elapsed between its conclusion and his final effort, in 1644, he -was industriously occupied in making preparations for a renewal of -hostilities. An opportunity at length presented itself for executing his -long-cherished purpose. The colony was involved in intestine dissensions. -An insurrection had taken place in consequence of the unpopularity of the -governor, and at a moment when the people were occupied with internal -disorders and heedless of danger from without, their great enemy struck a -powerful and almost fatal blow. - -He was now advanced to extreme old age, being supposed to have numbered -nearly a hundred years, but the powers of his mind were still so -vigorous, that he was the leading spirit of a confederacy embracing -all the Indian tribes distributed over a space of country six hundred -miles in extent. Unable to walk, he was borne in a litter to the scene -of action (April 18th, 1644,) and thus led his warriors to the attack. -Such was the skill with which his measures had been concerted that the -whole force of the Indians commenced their operations upon the entire -line of the frontier at the same instant of time, with the intention of -carrying a war of extermination down to the sea, and thus annihilating -the colony at a single blow. In two days, five hundred persons had fallen -in the massacre. Of course, every operation of industry was instantly -abandoned, and all who were able to bear arms were embodied to oppose -so terrible an invasion. Governor Berkeley, at the head of a chosen -force, consisting of every twentieth man in the colony, marched into the -enemy’s country, and thus gave him the first check. Of the details of the -campaign, in consequence of the confusion and distress prevailing at the -time, no details are furnished by the contemporary historians. Beverly’s -account, the only one which survived the ravages of the time, is meagre -and unsatisfactory. One result of the war, however, is sufficiently well -attested, since it terminated the horrors of the season. This was the -capture of the aged Opechancanough, who was surprised and taken prisoner -by a squadron of horse under the command of Governor Berkeley, who -forthwith conducted him in triumph to James-Town. - -It was the governor’s intention to have sent this remarkable person -to England; but he was shot after being taken prisoner, by a soldier, -in resentment of the calamities he had inflicted on the province. He -lingered under the wound for several days, and died with the pride and -firmness of an old Roman. Indignant at the crowds who came to gaze at -him on his deathbed, he exclaimed; “If I had taken Sir William Berkeley -prisoner, I would not have exposed him as a show to the people.” Perhaps -he remembered that he had saved the life of Captain Smith, and forgot the -numberless instances in which he had exposed other prisoners to public -derision and lingering torture. - -After the decease of their great enemy, the colonists had no difficulty -in concluding a treaty with the Indians, which gave tranquillity to the -province for a long term of years. - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE BURNING OF SCHENECTADY. - - -The incursions of the Indians on our frontiers in early times were -usually the result of Spanish influence in the South, or French influence -in the North. The French reduced the incitement of Indian hostilities to -a complete system, and their officers and soldiers were not ashamed to -accompany the savages in their murdering and marauding expeditions into -New England and New York. Among all the recorded instances of this kind, -none appears to have been attended with more atrocious circumstances -of cruelty and rapine, than the burning of Schenectady. This affair is -marked by many traits of the very worst description. The inhumanity of -murdering in their beds the very people who had formerly relieved their -wants, is, perhaps, without a parallel. - -In 1690, Count de Frontignac, governor general of Canada, sent out -three expeditions against the American colonies. The first of these -proceeded against Schenectady, then a small village, situated on the -Mohawk river. This party, after wandering for twenty-two days through -deserts rendered trackless by snow, approached the village of Schenectady -in so exhausted a condition, that they had determined to surrender -themselves to the inhabitants as prisoners of war. But, arriving at a -late hour on an inclement night, and hearing from the messengers they -had sent forward that the inhabitants were all in bed, without even the -precaution of a public watch, they exchanged their intention of imploring -mercy to themselves, for a plan of nocturnal attack and massacre of -the defenceless people, to whose charity their own countrymen had once -been so highly indebted. This detestable requital of good with evil -was executed with a barbarity which, of itself, must be acknowledged -to form one of the most revolting and terrific pictures that has ever -been exhibited of human cruelty and ferocity. Dividing themselves into -a number of parties, they set fire to the village in various places, -and attacked the inhabitants with fatal advantage when, alarmed by the -conflagration, they endeavoured to escape from their burning houses. The -exhausted strength of the Frenchmen appeared to revive with the work of -destruction, and to gather energy from the animated horror of the scene. -Not only were all the male inhabitants they could reach put to death, -but women were murdered, and their infants dashed on the walls of the -houses. But either the delay caused by this elaborate cruelty, or the -more merciful haste of the flames to announce the calamity to those who -might still fly from the assassins, enabled many of the inhabitants to -escape. The efforts of the assailants were also somewhat impeded by a -sagacious discrimination which they thought it expedient to exercise. -Though unmindful of benefits, they were not regardless of policy: and of -a number of Mohawk Indians who were in the village, not one sustained -an injury. Sixty persons perished in the massacre, and twenty-seven -were taken prisoners. Of the fugitives who escaped half naked, and made -their way through a storm of snow to Albany, twenty-five lost their limbs -from the intensity of the frost. The French, having totally destroyed -Schenectady, retired loaded with plunder from a place where, we think, -it must be acknowledged that even the accustomed atrocities of Indian -warfare had been outdone. - -[Illustration] - - - - -REMARKABLE CUSTOM OF THE NATCHES. - - -The Natches were a very considerable nation; they formed several -villages, that were under some peculiar chief, and these obeyed one -superior of the whole nation. All these chiefs bore the name of suns; -they adored that luminary, and carried his image on their breasts, rudely -carved. The manner in which the Natches rendered divine service to the -sun has something solemn in it. The high-priest got up at break of day, -and marched at the head of the people with a grave pace, the calumet of -peace in his hand. He smoked in honour of the sun, and blew the first -mouthful of smoke towards him; when he rose above the horizon, they -howled by turns after the high-priests, and contemplated it with their -arms extended to heaven. They had a temple in which they kept up an -eternal fire. - -So proud were these chiefs, who pretended to trace their origin to the -sun, that they had a law, by which every Natchez, who had married a -girl of the blood of the suns, must follow her in death, as soon as she -had breathed her last. There was an Indian, whose name was Etteacteal; -he dearly loved a daughter of one of these suns, and married her; but -the consequence of this honour had nearly proved very fatal to him. His -wife fell sick: he watched over her day and night, and with many tears -he besought her not to die, and they prayed together to Wachil, or the -sun, that he would spare her life; at last he saw her at the point of -death, and then he fled: for the moment she ceased to breathe, he was to -be slain. He embarked in a piragua on the Mississippi, and came to New -Orleans. He put himself under the protection of M. de Bienville, the then -governor, who interested himself for him with the Natches; they declared -that he had nothing more to fear. - -Etteacteal, being thus assured, resolved to return to his nation; and, -without settling among them, made several voyages thither; he happened to -be there, when the chief called the Stung Serpent, brother to the head of -the nation, died; he was a relation of the late wife of Etteacteal, and -the people resolved to make the latter pay his debt, and arrested him. -When he found himself in the hut of the grand chief of war, he gave vent -to the excess of his grief. - -The favourite wife of the deceased Stung Serpent, who was likewise to be -sacrificed, and who saw the preparations for her death with firmness, -hearing the complaints and groans of Etteacteal, said to him, “Art thou -no warrior?” he said, “Yes, I am one.” “However,” said she, “thou criest, -life is dear to thee; and as that is the case, it is not good that thou -shouldst go along with me—go with the women.” Etteacteal replied, “True, -life is dear to me: it would be well if I walked yet on earth; wait, O -wait till the death of the great sun, and I will die with him.” “Go -thy way,” she said, “it is not fit that thou die with me, and thy heart -remain behind on earth; the warriors will obey my word, for now, so near -to the Spirit of life, I am full of power: go away, and let me see thee -no more.” He did not stay to have this order repeated; he disappeared -like lightning. Three old women, two of whom were his relations, offered -to pay his debt; their age and their infirmities had disgusted them with -life, none of them had been able to walk for a great while; but the hair -of the two that were related to Etteacteal, was no more grey than that -of young women; the third was a hundred and twenty years old; they were -sacrificed in the evening, at the going down of the sun. - -The generosity of these women gave the Indian life again, acquired -him the degree of _Considered_, and cleared his honour, that had been -sullied by his fearing death. The hour being come for the sacrifice of -the favourite wife of the deceased chief, she came forth, and called her -children round her, while the people stood a little way off: “Children,” -she said, “this is the day on which I am to tear myself from your arms, -and to follow your father’s steps, who waits for me in the country of -the spirits; if I were to yield to your tears, I should injure my love, -and fail in my duty. I have done enough for you by bearing you next to -my heart, and by suckling you with my breasts. You that are descended of -his blood, and fed by my milk, ought you to shed tears? rejoice, rather, -that you are suns and warriors: go, my children, I have provided for -all your wants, by procuring you friends; my friends, and those of your -father, are yours too. And you, Frenchmen,” she added, turning herself -towards our officers, “I recommend my orphan children to you;—you ought -to protect them; we shall be longer friends in the country of the spirits -than here, because we do not die there again. And now the day is sinking -behind the hills; yet a few moments, my husband, and I come!” - -Moved by these words, a noble woman came to join herself to the favourite -wife, of her own accord, being engaged, she said, by the friendship she -bore the Stung Serpent, to follow him into the other world. The Europeans -called her the Haughty Lady, on account of her majestic deportment, -and proud and beautiful features: on this account the French officers -regretted very much her resolve, and strove to dissuade her from it, but -in vain: the moving sight filled them all with grief and horror. - -[Illustration] - - - - -PONTIAC. - - -Great as were many of the western Indian warriors, none was greater than -Pontiac, a chief whose fame was not only spread throughout America, but -widely diffused in Europe. He was the chief of all the Indians on the -chain of lakes: the Ottawas, to which he belonged, the Miamis, Chippewas, -Wyandots, Pottawatomies, Winnebagoes, Shawanese, Ottagamies, and -Mississagas, all of which tribes afterwards were led by Tecumseh. Pontiac -is said to have possessed a majestic and princely appearance, so pleasing -to the Indians, and this in part accounts for his popularity among them. - -In 1760, after the capture of Quebec, Major Rogers was sent into the -country of Pontiac to drive the French from it. Being informed of his -approach, Pontiac sent word to him to wait until he came to him. The -major waited, and when Pontiac came, that chief asked him why he entered -his dominions without permission. The major answered that he came not -against the natives but the French; and at the same time gave the chief -several belts of wampum; whereupon Pontiac replied, “I stand in the path -you travel until to-morrow morning.” By this was meant that he must -not proceed until the next morning. Upon an offer of the Indian, Major -Rogers bought a large quantity of parched corn, and other provisions. -The next day Pontiac offered him every facility for the undertaking. -Messengers were sent to the different tribes to assure them that the -English had his permission to pass through the country, and he even -accompanied the major and troops as far as Detroit. He was noted for the -desire of knowledge, and while the English were in his country, he was -very curious in examining their arms, clothes, &c., and expressed a wish -to go to England. He said that he would allow white settlements within -his domains; and was willing to call the king of England _uncle_ but not -master. He further told the soldiers that they must behave themselves -peaceably while in his country, or he would stop the way. - -Pontiac had distinguished himself at Detroit and Michillimackinac. -When the French gave up Canada (1760), their Indian allies still -preserved their hatred towards the English, and as Pontiac was the most -considerable enemy of that nation, the adjacent tribes _all came_ to him -as a support against them. Pontiac had advanced farther in civilization -than any of the neighbouring chiefs: he appointed a commissary during -the war of 1763, called Pontiac’s war; and issued bills of credit, on -each of which was pictured the thing desired, and the figure of an otter, -the symbol of his tribe. In 1763 Major Rogers sent a bottle of brandy to -him, which Pontiac was counselled not to drink, as it probably contained -poison. But with the greatest magnanimity he exclaimed, “It is not in his -power to _kill him_ who has so lately saved his life.” - - - - -THE IDOL OF THE PEORIAS. (FROM AN OLD TRAVELLER.) - - -“We arrived at the village of the Peorias, allies of the Illinois, -through a fine large meadow, which is many leagues long. This village is -situated on the banks of a little river, and surrounded with great pales -and posts: there are many trees on the banks, and the huts are built -beneath them. When we arrived there, I inquired for the hut of the grand -chief: I was well received by him and his first warriors. They had just -been beaten by the Foxes, their mortal enemies, and were now holding a -consultation about it. A young Indian lighted the calumet of peace; then -they brought me a dish of maize flour, called sagamité, sweetened with -the syrup of the maple-tree; and afterwards a dessert of dry fruits, as -good as Corinth raisins. The next day I saw a great crowd in the plain: -they were for making a dance in favour of their new Manitou; the high -priest had a bonnet of feathers, like a crown, on his head. I was at the -door of the temple of their false deity; he begged me to go in. Judge of -my astonishment, for this is the picture of their Manitou: his head hung -upon his breast, and looked like a goat’s; his ears and his cruel eye -were like those of a lynx, with the same kind of hair; his feet, hands, -and thighs were in form something like those of a man. - -“The Indians found him in the woods, at the foot of a ridge of -mountains, and the priests had persuaded them to adopt him for a -divinity. This general assembly was called, to invoke his protection -against their enemies. I let the Indians know that their Manitou was an -evil genius; as a proof of it, I said that he had just permitted the -nation of Foxes, their most cruel enemies, to gain a victory over them, -and they ought to get rid of him as soon as possible, and be revenged on -him. After a short time, they answered, ‘Houé nigeié, tinai labé,’—‘we -believe thee, thou art in the right.’ They then voted that he should -be burnt; and the great priest, after some opposition, pronounced his -sentence, which, according to the interpreter’s explanation, was in these -terms: ‘O thou, fatal to our nation, who has wrongfully taken thee for -her Manitou! thou hast paid no regard to the offerings which we have made -thee, and hast allowed our enemies, whom thou dost plainly protect, to -overcome us; therefore our old men, assembled in council, have decreed, -with the advice of the chief of the white warriors, that to expiate thy -ingratitude towards us, thou shalt be burnt alive.’ At the end of this -sentence, all the assembly said, ‘Hau, hau,’ which signified ‘yes.’ - -“As I wished to get this monster, I went to the priest, made him a small -present, and bid my interpreter tell him that he should persuade his -countrymen, that if they burnt this evil genius, there might arise one -from his ashes that could be fatal to them; that I would go on purpose -across the great lake, to deliver them from it. He found my reasons -good, and got the sentence changed, so that it was strangled. I got it -instantly dissected, in order to bring it to France, where its skeleton -is now in the cabinet of natural history of M. de Fayolles. The assembly -dispersed, and returned to their village by the river side. In the -evening you might see them sitting in groups at their doors, and on the -shore, with many fires made of the branches of the trees, whose light was -on the water and the grove; while some of them danced the dance of war, -with loud shrieks, that were enough to strike an awe into the heart.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -DEATH OF A MOHAWK CHIEF. - - -Count Frontignac, whose sprightly manners and energetic character -supported the spirits of his countrymen amidst every reverse, was so -provoked with what he deemed the ingratitude of the Five Nations for -his kindness to them at Schenectady, that, besides encouraging his own -Indian allies to burn their prisoners alive, he at length condemned to a -death still more dreadful, two Mohawk warriors who had fallen into his -hands. In vain the French priests remonstrated against this sentence, and -urged him not to bring so foul a stain on the Christian name: the count -declared that every consideration must yield to the safety and defence -of his people, and that the Indians must not be encouraged to believe -that they might practise the extreme of cruelty on the French without -the hazard of having it retorted on themselves. If he had been merely -actuated by politic considerations, without being stimulated by revenge, -he might have plainly perceived, from the conduct of all the Indian -tribes in their wars with each other, that the fear of retort had no -efficacy whatever to restrain them from their barbarous practices, which -he now undertook to sanction as far as his example was capable of doing. -The priests, finding that their humane intercession was ineffectual, -repaired to the prisoners, and laboured to persuade them to embrace -the Christian name, as a preparation for the dreadful fate which they -were about to receive from Christian hands; but their instructions were -rejected with scorn and derision, and they found the prisoners determined -to dignify, by Indian sentiments and demeanour, the Indian death which -they had been condemned to undergo. Shortly before the execution, some -Frenchman, less inhuman than his governor, threw a knife into the prison, -and one of the Mohawks immediately dispatched himself with it: the other, -expressing contempt at his companion’s mean evasion from glory, walked to -the stake, singing in his death-chant, that he was a Mohawk warrior, that -all the power of man could not extort the least expression of suffering -from his lips, and that it was ample consolation to him to reflect that -he had made many Frenchmen suffer the same pangs that he must now himself -undergo. When attached to the stake, he looked round on his executioners, -their instruments of torture, and the assembled multitude of spectators, -with all the complacency of heroic fortitude; and, after enduring for -some hours, with composed mien and triumphant language, a series of -barbarities too atrocious and disgusting to be recited, his sufferings -were terminated by the interposition of a French lady, who prevailed with -the governor to order that mortal blow, to which human cruelty has given -the name of _coup de grace_ or stroke of _favour_. - - - - -MURDER OF MISS MACREA. - - -Mr. Jones, an officer of the British army, had gained the affections -of Miss Macrea, a lovely young lady of amiable character and spotless -reputation, daughter of a gentleman attached to the royal cause, residing -near Fort Edward; and they had agreed to be married. In the course of -service, the officer was removed to some distance from his bride, and -became anxious for her safety and desirous of her company. He engaged -some Indians, of two different tribes, to bring her to camp, and promised -a keg of rum to the person who should deliver her safe to him. She -dressed to meet her bridegroom, and accompanied her Indian conductors; -but by the way, the two chiefs, each being desirous of receiving the -promised reward, disputed which of them should deliver her to her lover. -The dispute rose to a quarrel; and, according to their usual method of -disposing of a disputed prisoner, one of them instantly cleft the head -of the lady with his tomahawk. This simple story, sufficiently tragical -and affecting in itself, was blazoned in the American newspapers with -every amplification that could excite the imagination or touch the -heart; and contributed in no slight degree to embitter the minds of the -people against those who could degrade themselves by the aid of such -allies. The impulse given to the public mind by such atrocities more -than counterbalanced any advantages which the British derived from the -assistance of the Indians. - - - - -AN INDIAN IN COLLEGE. - - -The first serious disappointment which John Eliot, the Indian Apostle, -experienced, was in his efforts for the instruction of the Indian youth -in the classic languages; many of the ablest and most promising among -them were set apart for this purpose; his ambition was to bring them -up “with our English youth in university learning.” Where was the use -of this? Eliot’s best purposes were prone to be carried to excess. He -gave away a whole year’s salary, at a wretched cottage, while his wife -was probably expecting it at home for household demands. He had learned -his Indians to read and write; many could read English well; and now he -wished to give them a polite education, that must have sat as gracefully -on them as the full-sleeved gown and bands of the divine. Considerable -sums were expended in their board and education: a substantial building -of brick, which cost between three and four hundred pounds, was erected; -it was large enough to accommodate twenty scholars. It must have been -Spartan discipline to the heads as well as hearts of the poor Indians, -to labour morn and night through the Greek and Roman authors, to try to -discover and relish the beauties of style and the splendour of imagery. -No doubt, their thoughts sometimes fled away to their deserts, where -their fathers roved in dignity and freedom, and books never came. The -design might be praiseworthy, but Providence did not smile upon it, most -of these young men died when they had made great proficiency in their -studies, as if the languages wore out their hearts; others abandoned -their books, even when they were prepared to enter Harvard College, in -the town of Cambridge; their patience was probably exhausted, and the -boon of literary dignity could lure them no further. A few of these, -passing from one extreme to the other, burst their bonds at once; and -as if mind and body panted together to be free, hastened back to the -wilderness again, into its wigwams and swamps; where neither Homer nor -Ovid was like to follow them. - -“These circumstances proved very discouraging to the godly in New -England,” says a contemporary. “Some were so far affected by them, as to -conceive that they were manifest tokens of the Divine disapprobation. Mr. -Eliot, however, whose faith was more vigorous, considered them merely as -trials, to which they ought to submit without reluctance.” In consequence -of the death and failure of those who entered the aforesaid building, it -was soon after chiefly occupied by the English. Only one of these Indian -students appears to have obtained his degree at Harvard College; and at -the conclusion of two Latin and Greek elegies, which he composed on the -death of an eminent minister, subscribed himself “Cheesecaumuk, Senior -Sophista.” What an incongruous blending of sounds! - -Eliot at last saw his error, and, instead of the classics, applied with -fresh ardour to his more useful translations, of which the circulation -was so rapid, that he printed a fresh edition of the “Practice of -Piety.” He also soon after established a lecture at Naticke, in which he -explained the leading doctrines of theology and logic: here he was on -safe ground, and his labours were eminently useful. During the summer -months they assembled eagerly once a fortnight, and many of them gained -much knowledge; yet he was far from being satisfied with his oral -instructions, and he printed a thousand copies of a logic primer, and -made little systems of all the liberal arts, for the use of the Indians. -The same minds that had pined and sunk beneath the study of the classic -tongues, embraced these things with ardour. - -[Illustration] - - - - -AN INDIAN WARRANT. - - -Judge Davis, in his Appendix to the Memorial, observes, that the -employment of the more intelligent and energetic Indians as rulers, was -particularly grateful to them. He had often heard of amusing anecdotes of -the Indian rulers. The following warrant is recollected, which was issued -by one of these magistrates, directed to an Indian constable, and will -not suffer in comparison with our more verbose forms. - -‘I, Hihoudi, you Peter Waterman, Jeremy Wicket, quick you take him, fast -you hold him straight you bring him before me, Hihoudi.’ - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration: Pocahontas Saving the Life of Captain Smith. - -Page 99.] - - - - -CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH. - - -This gentleman figures, in the early history of our country, as the most -strenuous promoter of colonization, the most wise founder, and the most -active governor, of colonies. In New England he acted as discoverer -and settler; in Virginia he sustained both these characters, as well -as that of the most efficient and able governor of the first permanent -colony. When he landed upon the soil, he was a private citizen; but the -misgovernment of others soon made it necessary to call him to the office -of governor. - -Under his directions James-Town was fortified by such defences as were -sufficient to repel the attacks of the savages; and, by dint of great -labour, which he was always the foremost to share, the colonists were -provided with dwellings that afforded shelter from the weather, and -contributed to restore and preserve their health. Finding the supplies -of the savages discontinued, he put himself at the head of a detachment -of his people, and penetrated into the country; and by courtesy and -liberality to the tribes whom he found well disposed, and vigorously -repelling the hostilities of such as were otherwise minded, he obtained -for the colony the most abundant supplies. - -In the midst of his successes he was surprised on an expedition, by a -hostile body of savages, who, having succeeded in making him prisoner, -after a gallant and nearly successful defence, prepared to inflict on him -the usual fate of their captives. His eminent faculties did not desert -him on this trying occasion. He desired to speak with the sachem or -chief, and, presenting him with a mariner’s compass, expatiated on the -wonderful discoveries to which it had led, described the shape of the -earth, the vastness of its lands and oceans, the course of the sun, the -varieties of nations, and the singularity of their relative positions, -which made some of them antipodes to the others. - -With equal prudence and magnanimity he refrained from all solicitations -for his life, which would only have weakened the impressions which he -hoped to produce. The savages listened with amazement and admiration. -They had handled the compass, and viewing with surprise the play of the -needle, which they plainly saw, but found it impossible to touch, from -the intervention of the glass, this marvellous object prepared their -minds for the reception of those vast impressions by which their captive -endeavoured to gain ascendency over them. - -For an hour after he had finished his harangue, they seem to have -remained undecided; till their habitual sentiments reviving, they resumed -their suspended purpose, and, having bound him to a tree, prepared to -dispatch him with their arrows. But a stronger impression had been made -on their chief; and his soul, enlarged for a season by the admission -of knowledge, or subdued by the influence of wonder, revolted from the -dominion of habitual ferocity. This chief was named Opechancanough, and -destined at a future period to invest his barbarous name with terror and -celebrity. Holding up the compass in his hand, he gave the signal of -reprieve, and Smith, though still guarded as a prisoner, was conducted to -a dwelling where he was kindly treated, and plentifully entertained. But -the strongest impressions pass away, while the influence of habit remains. - -After vainly endeavouring to prevail on their captive to betray the -English colony into their hands, they referred his fate to Powhatan, -the king or principal sachem of the country, to whose presence they -conducted him in triumphal procession. The king received him with much -ceremony, ordered a plentiful repast to be set before him, and then -adjudged him to suffer death by having his head laid on a stone and -beat to pieces with clubs. At the place appointed for this barbarous -execution, he was again rescued from impending fate by the interposition -of Pocahontas, the favourite daughter of the king, who, finding her -first entreaties disregarded, threw her arms around the prisoner, and -declared her determination to save him or die with him. Her generous -affection prevailed over the cruelty of her tribe, and the king not only -gave Smith his life, but soon after sent him back to James-Town, where -the beneficence of Pocahontas continued to follow him with supplies of -provisions that delivered the colony from famine. - - - - -ANECDOTES OF KING PHILIP’S WAR. - - -COMMENCEMENT OF THE WAR. - -In the year 1674, the number of Eliot’s towns and settlements, in -which industry, comfort, good order, and the best instruction, were -established, amounted to more than twelve, when an unforeseen event -happened, that threw a cloud over all his prospects. This was the war -in which the colonists of New England were involved with Philip, son of -Massasoit, the celebrated chief, and, for the last years of his life, -the firm friend of the English. “O, thou sword of the wilderness, when -wilt thou be quiet?” says Mather, forgetful that it was bared by the -aggressions of the settlers, as well as by the fierce and restless -spirit of the Indian prince. Ever since the foundation of the colonies, -the former had conducted themselves, says more than one divine of the -period, with great kindness to their heathen brethren. The truth of this -assertion is very doubtful. The missionary took no part in the disputes, -save to urge his countrymen to forbearance and peace. “We, the poor -church of Naticke,” he writes to them, “hearing that the honoured rulers -of Plymouth are pressing and arming of soldiers to go to war with the -Indians, do mourn greatly on account of it, and desire that they may not -be destroyed, because we have not heard that they have done any thing -worthy of death. It is your duty to offer, accept, and desire peace, and -we pray you, for God’s sake, and for your souls’ sake, obey this word; -we long to hear of a happy peace, that may open a clear passage for the -gospel among that people.” Simple as these words are, they unfold an -affection on the part of the missionary and his converts, for those who -had few claims on their regard; for Philip, and most of his chiefs, had -sternly rejected all persuasions to Christianity. But Eliot was not of -the sentiment of another divine, who rejoiced in the rejection of the -proposals by the Indians, that “this thing was of the Lord.” He saw only -on one side an exquisite jealousy, roused by many wrongs, a heart burning -with vindictive feelings; on the other, a sordid ambition, an unhallowed -love of glory. It was a source of sorrow, that the torch of discord was -first kindled by one of his own people. In the end of the year 1674, John -Seusoman, a converted Indian, after having apostatized from the faith, -devoted himself to the service of Philip, as secretary. He informed the -English that his countrymen had resolved to adopt measures for their -destruction. “He could write,” says the historian, “though the king, his -master, could not read.” - -This renegade, fearing the consequences of what he had done, returned -to the protection of the settlers, and was soon after slain by two of -the Indian captains. The English arrested the perpetrators of the deed, -and, on a trial by jury, finding them guilty, they were executed. Philip -was alarmed at the condemnation of his counsellors, and, conscious -that he had given cause for suspicion, resolved to be the first in the -field. He had probably long waited for an opportunity. Rash, headstrong, -and vindictive, with the courage but not the talents of his father, -Massasoit, the slow and artful aggressions of the settlers stung him to -the quick. He began to gather his warriors around his dwelling-place, at -the strong forts near the Naraganset river; he received the accession of -several other tribes. In the mean time, it was said, strange sights and -sounds foreboded, in many parts of the colonies, the woes that were near; -the singing of bullets, and the awful passing away of drums in the air; -invisible troops of horses were heard riding to and fro; and in a clear, -still, sunshiny morning, the phantoms of men, fearfully flitting by! -Philip, heedless of omens and dreams, sent away the women and children, -and took his stand on Mount Hope, a low and beautiful eminence, on which -was his strongest fort. Ere matters came to a fatal extremity, and all -the evils of war were let loose on his settlements, Eliot did his utmost -to turn them aside; he saw that many of his people would inevitably be -involved with one party or the other. His town of Pakeunit was very near -Mount Hope; he had visited the latter during the life of Massasoit, and -though he felt not the same regard or esteem for his son, a friendly -intercourse had subsisted between them. His applications to the colonists -for peace being fruitless, he resolved to try them also on the former. - -[Illustration] - - -INTERVIEW BETWEEN ELIOT AND PHILIP. - -A few miles only distant, the encampment of the Indians around their -Mount was distinctly visible from Pakeunit; and Eliot, with two or three -of his people, went to have an interview with the chieftain. Philip -respected his character, though he disliked his proceedings, for he had -always treated his mission with contempt and slight; among the warriors, -however, both of his own and other tribes, were many who had heard -Eliot preach, and had received him beneath their roof. The interview -was without any success; the spirit of the Indian was made up to the -desperate struggle, and all that could be done was to beseech him to -spare the settlements of the converts. - -The contrast between the two men must have been sufficiently striking. -Philip was in the prime of life, with a frame nerved by early hardship, -and the usages of savage warfare, in which he was very expert; he was -dressed like his chiefs, save that he wore a silver-laced tunic, or coat, -and that his arms were more rich; his chief ensign of dignity was his -princely, yet cruel and gloomy features, where the thirst of revenge was -stamped. The frame of the missionary was not bowed even by seventy years, -though they had turned his hair white; the leathern girdle was about his -loins, that he always wore, and the simple apparel that he loved; he -stood among these fierce and exasperated men as calm and fearless as in -his own assembly at Naticke: he could not but foresee the devastation -about to be let loose on the land; that the fire and the sword would -waste all his pleasant places, and scatter his converts; and he returned -with a heavy heart to his home. Several of the latter afterwards sided -with the forces of Philip: whether from this circumstance, or from the -nearness of the settlement of Pakeunit to the camp of the prince, the -colonists contracted the strongest dislike and mistrust of the Christian -Indians. Eliot, when he saw there was no longer a chance of peace, -exhorted his people in the above town, and at Naticke, as well as the -other congregations, not to be moved by the example or seductions of -either party. - -[Illustration] - - -CHRISTIAN INDIANS ENGAGE IN THE WAR. - -The contagion was, however, too strong; and Eliot at last saw many of -them also take up arms against their infidel countrymen. The order and -harmony of their dwelling-places were for a time utterly blasted; on -the hills around Naticke and Pakeunit the watch-fires were blazing; -the war-whoops were often heard in the night; at intervals, a solitary -musket, and then a signal cry, came from the neighbouring woods; and yet -nearer, the poor Indians at last saw their plantations without the town, -burning; for Philip began hostilities by a sudden attack on them, so that -their taking up arms was partly in self-defence. After several actions, -he retired from Mount Hope to the woods, swamps, and fastnesses of the -interior, in the dominion of the great tribe of the Naraganset Indians, -who, for his sake, had now broken treaty with the English. It was the -depth of winter, yet the latter resolved to follow him to his retreats, -and an army of fifteen hundred men, under the command of the Hon. J. -Winslow, marched to the abode of the Indians. This was on an island of -about five or six acres, the only entrance to which was upon a long tree -over the water, so that but one man could pass at a time: but the water -was frozen; the trees and thickets were white with their burden of snow, -as was the surface of the earth, so that the smallest movement of the -Indians could be seen. - -Within the isle were gathered the powers of the Pequot and Naraganset -tribes, with their wives, families, and valuable things; the want of -leaves and thick foliage allowed no ambush, and the savage must fight -openly beside his own hearth and store. It was the close of day when -the colonists came up to the place; a fort, a blockhouse, and a wall -that passed round the isle, proved the skill, as well as resolution, -of the assailed; the frozen shores and water were quickly covered with -the slain, and then the Indians fought at their doors and around their -children, till all was lost, and a thousand of them fell. Philip fled -with his surviving forces to a distant position, where it was impossible -to follow him. Concord, one of the first settlements of Eliot, and one or -two other towns, were this winter destroyed, and its poor people turned -from their dwellings into all the rigours of the winter; many perished in -the woods or amidst the snows, or by the secret and sudden ambushes of -the enemy. - -[Illustration] - - -MISFORTUNES OF PHILIP. - -The last defeat, in which his best fighting men were slain, had broken -the power, but not the spirit, of Philip. Unable to meet the colonists -in the open field, he harassed them in a thousand ways, so that, as the -spring advanced, the more industrious and timid were thrown into the -extremity of despair, and said, “How shall we wade through another summer -like the last?” But the chief was now a wandering exile; his paternal -dominion was taken; the singular friendship of Quanonchet, “the mighty -sachem of the Naragansets,” was his last support. The fidelity of this -man was tried to the uttermost: he had received the fugitive with open -arms; rallied all his forces around him; they fought, side by side, with -the heroism of men on the last strand of their country; were defeated, -and fled together, without a reproach or complaint on either side; they -retreated yet farther into the interior, and, by their persuasions, -engaged other tribes in the cause; but, at this moment, the Maquas, a -powerful nation in the west, made a descent on them, and wasted their -band. In spite of these disasters, they again advanced. - - -CLOSE OF THE WAR. - -Eliot, during these troubles, was subjected to much contempt and -reproach. His efforts to protect his people, and watch over their -interests, were incessant; but so strong was the suspicion against them, -that the colonists, not content with confining a great number of them in -Long Island, inflicted on them many sufferings, and a few of the more -cruel said that they were worthy of death. - -But the war began to draw to a close: Quanonchet, venturing out with a -few followers near the enemy, was pursued and taken. His behaviour under -his misfortunes was very noble and affecting; for when repeated offers -were made him of life, if he would deliver up Philip, and submit his -own people to the English, he proudly rejected them. They condemned him -to die, and, by a refinement of cruelty, by the hands of three young -Indian chiefs. The heroic man said, “that he liked it well, for he should -die before his heart was soft, or he had spoken any thing unworthy of -himself.” - -Philip was deeply moved by the death of the chieftain, for their -friendship was like that of David and Jonathan, strongest in misery and -exile. He was not yet left desolate: his beloved wife and only child -were with him. They had shared all his sufferings; in his flights, his -inroads, his dwellings in the swamps, they seem never to have left his -side. The unfortunate prince now returned to Mount Hope, the scene of -his former power and happiness; it was for no purpose of defence that he -came, for it was too near the English settlements, but merely to visit -it once more. “He finds it,” says Mather, “to be Mount Misery, Mount -Confusion!” - -No doubt it was so to his bleeding spirit; for, with all his savage -propensities, this prince was susceptible of some of the finest feelings -of our nature. He sat down mournfully on the beautiful Mount, on which -were now the ruins of his fortress and camp; but he could not remain long -here, for the feet of his pursuers were nigh, and he was compelled to -seek his distant retreats again:—there was a greater agony in store for -him than the sight of his ruined home. - -Early one morning, his quarters were surprised by the English, most of -his followers slain, and his wife and son made captive. The chief fled, -broken-hearted, but unsubdued, leaving all he loved on earth in the hands -of those who had no mercy. “This was no small torment to him,” quaintly -says the historian. “Wo to him that spoileth! His peag, or silver belt, -the ensign of his princedom, also remained in our hands, so hardly did he -escape.” The measure of his woes was not yet full. The Indian princess of -Pocasset was warmly attached to his cause, and had more than once aided -him in his extremity; she had received him beneath her roof, soothed his -sorrows, and, what was more, summoned her people to fight for him; and -saved him and his people in her canoes the year before. Now, she followed -him in his flight, and, as the more devout said, as if by a judgment, -could not find a canoe to transport her, and, venturing over the river -upon a raft, it broke under her, and she was drowned. Her body was soon -after washed on shore, and the English, forgetful of all decency and -delicacy to a woman of her rank, though a savage, cut off her head, and -placed it on high, which, when the Indians who were her people saw, they -gathered round, and gave way to the most sad and touching lamentations. - -Philip now began, like Saul of old, when earth was leaving him, to look -to the powers beyond it, and to apply to his magicians and sorcerers, -who, on consulting their oracles, assured him that no Englishman should -ever kill him. This was a vague consolation, yet it seems to have given -him, for a while, a confidence in his destiny, and he took his last stand -in the middle of a distant and almost inaccessible swamp. It was a fit -retreat for a despairing man, being one of those waste and dismal places -to which few ever wandered, covered with rank and dense vegetation. The -moist soil was almost hidden by the cypress and other trees, that spread -their gloomy shades over the treacherous shallows and pools beneath. - -In the few drier parts, oaks and pines grew, and, between them, a -brushwood so thick, that the savage could hardly penetrate: on the long -rich grass of these parts, wild cattle fed, unassailed by the hand of -man, save when they ventured beyond the confines of the swamp. There were -wolves, deer, and other animals; and wilder men, it was said, were seen -here; it was supposed that the children of some of the Indians had either -been lost or left here, and had thus grown up like denizens of this wild. -Here the baffled chieftain gathered his little band around him, like a -lion baited by the hunters, sullenly seeking his gloomy thickets, only to -spring forth more fatally; despair was his only friend; for what other -was now left: his love was turned to agony; his wife was in the hand of -his enemies; and would they spare her beauty? His only son, the heir of -his long line, must bow his head to their yoke; his chief warriors had -all fallen, and he could not trust the few who were still with him. - -Quanonchet, whose fidelity and attachment were stronger than death, was -in the land of spirits, chasing the shadowy deer, and solaced with many -wives; for Philip, to the last, believed in the religion of his country. -In this extremity, an Indian proposed to seek peace with the English;—the -prince instantly laid him dead at his feet. This man had a friend, who, -disgusted with the deed, soon after fled from the place to Rhode Island, -where the English were recruiting their weary forces, and betrayed the -place of his retreat. On this intelligence, a body of forces instantly -set out. - -[Illustration: Death of King Philip. - -Page 115.] - - -DEATH OF PHILIP. - -The night before his death, Philip, “like him in the army of Midian,” -says the historian, “had been dreaming that he was fallen into the hands -of the English; he awoke in great alarm, and told it to his friends, -and advised them to fly for their lives, for that he believed it would -come to pass.” The place was well suited to awake all the terrors of the -imagination; to any eye but that of the savage, it was like the “valley -of the shadow of death;” the cypress and oak trees hung heavy and still, -over the accursed soil; the faint gleam of the pools and sluggish lakes -on every side, in the starlight, and the howl of the wolf, fitfully, as -if it warned that the hour was nigh. “Now, just as he was telling his -dream, Captain Church, with his company, fell in upon them.” They had -been guided by the deserter to the swamp, and, with great difficulty, -across some felled trees, into its labyrinths. The battle was fierce -and short: Philip fought till he saw almost every follower fall in his -defence, then turned, and fled; he was pursued by an Englishman and an -Indian; and, as if the oracle was doomed to be fulfilled, the musket of -the former would not go off; and the latter fired, and shot him through -the heart. - -With his death, all resistance ceased; his dominions fell into the -hands of the colonists, and peace was restored to the settlements, but -prosperity came not with it. It was a cruel blow to Eliot, nearly all -whose life had been given to his beloved cause, to look around on the -plantations ravaged, the dwellings empty, the defences broken, and, more -than all, the spirit of his people in despair. Of twelve towns, at the -beginning of the war, four only were now undestroyed. - - - - -CANONICUS. - - -The _Narragansets_, possessed the country about Narraganset Bay, -including Rhode Island, and other Islands in that vicinity, and a part -of Connecticut. _Canonicus_ was their great warrior Sachem. This tribe -is described by our early historians ‘as a great people,’ capable of -raising 4000 warriors. Canonicus lived to an advanced age, and died -according to Gov. Winthrop, June 4th, 1647. He discovered a generous mind -in receiving Rev. Roger Williams when in great distress, and affording -him a friendly protection. Mr. Williams mentioned his name with respect -and acknowledged his obligation to him thus in a manuscript letter to -the Governor of Massachusetts. After observing that many hundreds of the -English were witnesses to the friendly disposition of the Narragansets, -he says: ‘Their late long lived Canonicus so lived and died, in the same -most honorable manner and solemnity (in their way) as you laid to sleep -your prudent peace-maker Mr. Winthrop, did they honor this their prudent -and peaceable prince; yea, through all their towns and countries how -frequently do many and oft times of Englishmen travel alone with safety -and loving kindness?’ On one occasion Canonicus thus addressed Roger -Williams: ‘I have never suffered any wrong to be done to the English -since they landed, nor never will. If the English speak true, if he mean -truly, then shall I go to my grave in peace, and I hope that the English -and my posterity shall live in love and peace together.’ ‘His heart,’ -says Mr. Williams, ‘was stirred up to love me as his son to the last -gasp.’ However partial Canonicus may have been to Rev. Mr. Williams, -he was not uniformly friendly to the settlers in general. It appears -in Gov. Winslow’s Good News from New England, that in February, 1622, -this chief sent into Plymouth, a bundle of arrows bound together with a -rattle-snake’s skin. This was received as it was intended, a challenge -for war. Gov. Bradford filled the rattle-snake skin with powder and shot -and returned it to _Canonicus_, with a message of defiance which produced -the desired effect. Canonicus was so frightened that he dared not touch -the article and soon returned it to Plymouth and became silent and -peaceable. - -[Illustration: Acceptance of Canonicus’ Challenge.] - - - - -CHICKATAUBUT. - - -_Chickataubut_, was a sachem of considerable note among the -_Massachusetts_ tribe, and one of those who, in 1621, acknowledged -themselves the subjects of King James. He was Sachem of Passonagesit -(Weymouth,) where his mother was buried. In Drake’s Indian Biography -the following is related from Thomas Morton’s New Canaan. In the -first settling of Plymouth, some of the company in wandering about -upon discovery, came upon an Indian grave, which was of the mother of -Chickataubut. Over the body a stake was set in the ground, and two huge -bear skins sewed together spread over it; these the English took away. -When this came to the knowledge of Chickataubut, he complained to his -people and demanded immediate vengeance. When they were assembled, he -thus harangued them: ‘When last the glorious light of all the sky was -underneath the globe and birds grew silent, I began to settle as my -custom is to take repose; before mine eyes were fast closed, me thought -I saw a vision, at which my spirit was much troubled, and trembling at -that doleful sight cried aloud; Behold! my son, whom I have cherished, -see the paps that gave thee suck, the hands that clasped thee warm, and -fed thee oft, canst thou forget to take revenge on those wild people -that hath my monument defaced in a despiteful manner; disdaining our -ancient antiquities, and honorable customs. See now the Sachem’s grave -lies, like unto the common people of ignoble race, defaced. Thy mother -doth complain, implores thy aid against this thievish people newly -come hither; if this be suffered I shall not rest in quiet within my -everlasting habitation.’ Battle was the unanimous resolve, and the -English were watched and followed from place to place, until at length -as some were going ashore in a boat, they fell upon them, but gained -little advantage. After maintaining the fight for some time, and being -driven from tree to tree, the chief captain was wounded in the arm and -the whole took to flight. This action caused the natives about Plymouth -to look upon the English as invincible, and was the reason that peace was -maintained so long after. - -When Boston was settled _Chickataubut_ visited Governor _Winthrop_, and -presented him with a hogshead of corn. Many of his ‘sanops and squaws’ -came with him, but were most of them sent away after they had all dined, -Chickataubut probably fearing they would be burdensome, although it -thundered and rained and the Governor urged their stay. At this time -he wore English clothes, and sat at the Governor’s table, where he -behaved himself soberly, &c. as an Englishman. “Not long after he called -on Governor Winthrop and desired to buy of him a suit of clothes for -himself, the governor informed him that ‘English Sagamores did not use -to truck;’ but he called his tailor and gave him orders to make him a -suit of clothes, whereupon he gave the governor two large skins of coat -beaver. The clothes being ready, the governor put him into a very good -new suit from head to foot, and after, he set meat before them; but he -would not eat till the governor had given thanks, and after meat he -desired him to do the like, and so departed.” - - - - -CONDITION OF THE INDIAN WOMEN. - - -Polygamy is not uncommon among them; and the husband occasionally finds -it necessary to administer a little wholesome castigation to his more -quarrelsome or refractory squaws. But many are satisfied with one wife. -The care of the tent and the whole drudgery of the family devolve on the -women. They gather fuel, cook the provisions, and repair every article -of dress; cultivate the ground, where any is cultivated; carry the -baggage on a journey; and pitch the tent when they halt. In these and -similar employments, their lordly fathers, husbands, and brothers, think -it degrading to assist them, and unworthy of warriors to engage in such -employments. - -Mr. Catlin, whose long residence among the Indians, and careful -observation of their habits, entitle his opinion to great respect, -regards the assignment of drudgery to the women as no more than an -equitable distribution of the labour necessary to the support of the -household. He considers the toils of war and the chase, which are almost -incessant, and are solely performed by the men, as a complete offset -to the domestic and agricultural cares of the women. On the whole he -thinks that the condition of the Indian women is as comfortable as it -is possible to render it by any arrangement which would not completely -change their mode of life. To withdraw the men from the chase and -confine them to the culture of the ground, would render the Indians an -agricultural and not a hunting people. Still the condition of the Indian -woman is a miserable and degraded one,—a condition of incessant labour -and care. - -In none of the tribes do the women experience much tenderness; but among -the Sioux they are so harshly treated, that they occasionally destroy -their female infants, alleging that it is better for them to be put -to death than to live as miserably as they themselves have done. Even -suicide is not uncommon among them, although they believe it offensive to -the Father of Life. - - - - -INDIAN EDUCATION. - - -The Indians never chastise their children, especially the boys; thinking -that it would damp their spirits, check their love of independence, and -cool their martial ardour, which they wish above all things to encourage. -“Reason,” say they, “will guide our children, when they come to the use -of it; and before that, their faults cannot be very great.” They avoid -compulsory measures, and allow the boys to act with uncontrolled freedom; -but endeavour, by example, instruction, and advice, to train them to -diligence and skill in hunting; to animate them with patience, courage, -and fortitude in war; and to inspire them with contempt of danger, pain, -and death,—qualities of the highest order in the estimation of an Indian. - -By gentleness and persuasion they endeavour to imbue the minds of their -children with virtuous sentiments, according to their notions of virtue. -The aged chiefs are zealous in this patriotic labour, and the squaws give -their cordial co-operation. - -Ishuchenau, an old Kanza warrior, often admonished the group of young -auditors who gathered around him, of their faults, and exhorted them -never to tell a lie, and never to steal, except from an enemy, whom it -is just to injure in every possible way. “When you become men,” said he, -“be brave and cunning in war, and defend your hunting grounds against -all encroachments: never suffer your squaws and little ones to want; -protect them and strangers from insult. On no occasion betray a friend; -be revenged on your enemies; drink not the poisonous strong water of the -white people, for it is sent by the bad spirit to destroy the Indians. -Fear not death; none but cowards fear to die. Obey and venerate old -people, particularly your parents. Fear and propitiate the bad spirit, -that he may do you no harm: love and adore the Good Spirit, who made -us all, who supplies our hunting grounds, and keeps all alive.” After -recounting his achievements, he was wont to add, “Like a decayed prairie -tree, I stand alone:—the friends of my youth, the companions of my -sports, my toils, and my dangers, rest their heads on the bosom of our -mother. My sun is fast descending behind the western hills, and I feel -it will soon be night with me.” Then with hands and eyes lifted towards -heaven, he thanked the Great Spirit for having spared him so long, to -show the young men the true path to glory and fame. - -Their opinions, in many instances, are false, and lead to corresponding -errors in conduct. In some tribes, the young person is taught to pray, -with various superstitious observances, that he may be a great hunter, -horse-stealer, and warrior; so that thus the fountain of virtue is -polluted. - -The Indians are entirely unacquainted with letters; but they have a -kind of picture writing, which they practise on the inside of the bark -of trees, or on skins prepared for the purpose, and by which they can -communicate the knowledge of many facts to each other. - -The Indian names are descriptive of the real or supposed qualities of -the person to whom they belong: they often change them in the course of -their lives. The young warrior is ambitious of acquiring a new name; -and stealing a horse, scalping an enemy, or killing a bear, is an -achievement which entitles him to choose one for himself, and the nation -confirms it. - - - - -SPEECH OF AN INDIAN TO JOHN ELIOT. - - -The following instance is very expressive of the fine use the Indians -make of simple and natural images:—the speaker was dressed in a robe -of several marten-skins sewed together; it was fastened to his right -shoulder, and passed under his left arm: he wrapped himself up in this -robe, and said— - -“My heart laughs for joy on seeing myself before thee: we have all of us -heard the word which thou hast sent us. How beautiful is the sun to-day! -but lately it was red and angry, for our hands were stained with blood; -our tomahawks thirsted for it; our women howled for the loss of their -relations; at the least shriek of the birds of night, all our warriors -were on foot; the serpents angrily hissed at us, as we passed. Those we -left behind sang the songs of death. - -“But now our whole nation laughs for joy to see us walk on the same road -with thyself, to join the Father of spirits: our hearts shall make but -one: come with us to the forests; come to our homes by the great river; -we shall plant the tree of life, of which thou speakest, there, and our -warriors shall rest beneath its leaves; and thou shalt tell us more -of that land where there is no storm or death, and the sun is always -bright. Will not that be good? What dost thou say to it, my father?” - - - - -RELIGION OF THE INDIANS. - - -Of the religion of the Indians we have no full and clear account. Indeed, -of the opinions of a people who have nothing more than a few vague and -indefinite notions, no distinct explanation can be given. On this subject -the Indians are not communicative; and to obtain a thorough knowledge -of it would require familiar, attentive, unsuspected, and unprejudiced -observation. But such observation is not easily made; and a few general, -and on some points uncertain, notices only can be given. - -On looking at the most renowned nations of the ancient heathen world, we -see the people prostrating themselves before innumerable divinities; and -we are ready to conclude that polytheism is the natural belief of man, -unenlightened by revelation. But a survey of the vast wilds of America -will correct this opinion. For there we find a multitude of nations, -widely separated from each other, all believing in One Supreme God, a -great and good spirit, the father and master of life, the maker of heaven -and earth, and of all other creatures. They believe themselves entirely -dependent on him, thank him for present enjoyments, and pray to him for -the good things they desire to obtain. They consider him the author of -all good; and believe he will reward or punish them according to their -deeds. - -They believe in inferior spirits also, both good and bad; to whom, -particularly to the good, they give the name of _Manitou_, and consider -them tutelary spirits. The Indians are careful observers of dreams, and -think themselves deserted by the Master of life, till they receive a -manitou in a dream; that is, till they dream of some object, as a buffalo -or beaver, or something else, which they think is an intimation that the -Great Spirit had given them that object as a manitou, or medicine. Then -they are full of courage, and proud of their powerful ally. To propitiate -the manitou, or medicine, every exertion is made, and every personal -consideration sacrificed. “I was lately the proprietor of seventeen -horses,” said a Mandan; “but I have offered them all to my medicine, and -am now poor.” He had turned all these horses, which constituted the whole -of his wealth, loose into the plain, committed them to his medicine, -and abandoned them for ever. But, although they offer oblations to the -manitous, they positively deny that they pay them any adoration, and -affirm that they only worship the Great Spirit through them. - -They have no regular periodical time either of private or public -religious worship. They have neither temples, altars, stated ministers -of religion, nor regular sacrifices; for the jugglers are connected -rather with the medical art than with religious services. The Indians in -general, like other ignorant people, are believers in witchcraft, and -think many of their diseases proceed from the arts of sorcerers. These -arts the jugglers pretend to counteract, as well as to cure natural -diseases. They also pretend to predict the weather and to make rain; and -much confidence is placed in their prognostications and their power. - -The devotional exercises of the Indians consist in singing, dancing, and -performing various mystical ceremonies, which they believe efficacious in -healing the sick, frustrating the designs of their enemies, and securing -their own success. They often offer up to the Great Spirit a part of the -game first taken in a hunting expedition, a part of the first produce -of their fields, and a part of their food. At a feast, they first throw -some of the broth, and then of the meat, into the fire. In smoking, they -generally testify their reverence for the Master of life, by directing -the first puff upwards, and the second downwards, or the first to the -rising, and the second to the setting sun: at other times they turn the -pipe to every point of the compass. - -They firmly believe in the immortality of the soul, and in a state of -future retribution: but their conceptions on these subjects are modified -and tinged by their occupations in life, and by their notions of good and -evil. They suppose the spirit retains the same inclinations as when in -the body, and rejoices in its old pursuits. At times, an Indian warrior, -when about to kill and scalp a prostrate enemy, addresses him in such -terms as the following:— - -“My name is Cashegra: I am a famous warrior, and am going to kill you. -When you reach the land of spirits, you will see the ghost of my father: -tell him it was Cashegra sent you there.” The uplifted tomahawk then -descends upon his victim. - -The Mandans[7] expected, when they died, to return to the original -subterraneous abode of their fathers: the good reaching the ancient -village by means of the lake, which the weight of the sins of the bad -will render them unable to pass. They who have behaved themselves well -in this life, and been brave warriors and good hunters, will be received -into the town of brave and generous spirits; but the useless and selfish -will be doomed to reside in the town of poor and useless spirits. - -The belief of those untutored children of nature has an influence on -their conduct. Among them the grand defect is, an erroneous estimate of -good and evil, right and wrong. - -[Illustration: Destruction of the Pequots.] - - - - -DESTRUCTION OF THE PEQUOTS IN 1637. - - -“An army of a hundred and sixty men, under the command of Captain -Underhill, were despatched, and with them was Uncas, an Indian chief: -when they landed from the river, they were joined by five hundred -Narraganset Indians. We were now informed that the Indians had retired -into two impregnable forts, one of which was the hold of Sassacus, the -chief tyrant; that fierce tiger, at the very mention of whose name the -Narragansets trembled, saying, “He was all one a God, nobody could kill -him.” The council of war determined to fall first upon the fort which -they could first find; and on their silent march in the moon-shiny night, -an Indian spy brought them word that the Pequots were in a profound -sleep. Our guide was one Wequash, an Indian revolted from them; and -now the Narragansets retired into the wood, and behind the trees—they -were overcome with fear. The English advanced against the nearest fort, -when a dog, that stood sentinel like another Cerberus, barking, awoke -them all; their cry, when they sprung from their sleep, was dreadful to -hear in the silent night; and thereupon followed a bloody encounter; -many were killed; but we set fire to their huts, and a high wind caused -them to be quickly consumed; many of the Indians climbed to the tops -of the palisadoes, and were a mark for the bullets; some of the trees -also burning threw such a fiery light, that with the howlings, and -cries also, the place was like the pit of torment. Samson was not in -greater distress by thirst after his exploit upon the Philistines, than -was the mighty Sassacus when his strong holds were thus burned, and his -barbarians dismissed from a world that was burdened with them. The next -day, as we were returning, three hundred of the enemy again came up, like -bears bereaved of their young; they fought, and made a fort of every -swamp in the way, covering their bodies with the green boughs and the -long grass, so that we were sometimes in the very midst of them, and knew -it not, save by the sudden yell and the volley.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -INDIAN COOLNESS. - - -Sam Barrow was a famous warrior in Philip’s war, and for a long time -dreaded as a ferocious enemy by the inhabitants. He was at length -captured by Captain Church at Cape Cod. Church, in his history, says, -that ‘he was as noted a rogue as any among the enemy.’ Church told him -that the government would not permit him to grant him quarter, because of -his inhuman murders and barbarities, and therefore ordered him to prepare -for execution. Barrow replied, that the sentence of death against him was -just, and that indeed he was ashamed to live any longer, and desired no -more favor than to smoke a whiff of tobacco before his execution. When -he had taken a few whiffs, he said, ‘I am ready,’ when one of Church’s -Indians, being prepared, sunk his hatchet into his brains. - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE GREAT MASSACRE OF VIRGINIA. - - -The peace which had subsisted since the marriage of Pocahontas had lulled -the English into security, and disposed them to extend their plantations -along the banks of the rivers, as far as the Potomac, in situations too -remote from each other. Their houses were open and free to the natives, -who became acquainted with their manner of living, their hours of eating, -of labor and repose, the use of their arms and tools, and frequently -borrowed their boats, for the convenience of fishing and fowling, and -to pass the rivers. This familiarity was pleasing to the English, as it -indicated a spirit of moderation, which had been always recommended, by -the Company in England, to the planters; and, as it afforded a favourable -symptom of the civilization and conversion of the natives; but by -them, or their leaders, it was designed to conceal the most sanguinary -intentions. - -In the spring of the next year, (1622) an opportunity offered, to -throw off the mask of friendship, and kindle their secret enmity into -a blaze. Among the natives who frequently visited the English, was a -tall, handsome, young chief, renowned for courage and success in war, -and excessively fond of finery in dress. His Indian name was Nematanow; -but by the English he was called Jack of the Feather. Coming to the -store of one Morgan, he there viewed several toys and ornaments, which -were very agreeable to the Indian taste; and persuaded Morgan to carry -them to Pamunky, where he assured him of an advantageous traffic. Morgan -consented to go with him; but was murdered by the way. - -In a few days, Nematanow came again to the store, with Morgan’s cap on -his head; and being interrogated by two stout lads, who attended there, -what was become of their master, he answered that he was dead. The boys -seized him, and endeavoured to carry him before a magistrate; but his -violent resistance, and the insolence of his language, so provoked them, -that they shot him. The wound proved mortal; and when dying, he earnestly -requested of the boys, that the manner of his death might be concealed -from his countrymen, and that he might be privately buried among the -English. - -As soon as this transaction was known, Opechancanough demanded -satisfaction; but being answered that the retaliation was just, he formed -a plan for a general massacre of the English, and appointed Friday, -the twenty-second day of March, for its execution; but he dissembled -his resentment to the last moment. Parties of Indians were distributed -through the Colony, to attack every plantation, at the same hour of the -day, when the men should be abroad and at work. On the evening before, -and on the morning of that fatal day, the Indians came as usual to the -houses of the English, bringing game and fish to sell, and sat down -with them to breakfast. So general was the combination, and so deep -the plot, that about one hour before noon, they fell on the people in -the fields and houses; and, with their own tools and weapons, killed, -indiscriminately, persons of all ages, sexes and characters; inhumanly -mangling their dead bodies, and triumphing over them, with all the -expressions of frantic joy. - -Where any resistance was made, it was generally successful. Several -houses were defended, and some few of the assailants slain. One of -Captain Smith’s old soldiers, Nathaniel Causie, though wounded, split -the skull of an Indian, and put his whole party to flight. Several -other parties were dispersed by the firing of a single gun, or by the -presenting of a gun, even in the hands of a woman. - -James-Town was preserved by the fidelity of Chanco, a young Indian -convert, who lived with Richard Pace, and was treated by him as a son. -The brother of this Indian came to lie with him, the night before the -massacre, and revealed to him the plot, urging him to kill his master, -as he intended to do by his own. As soon as he was gone in the morning, -Chanco gave notice of what was intended, to his master; who, having -secured his own house, gave the alarm to his neighbours, and sent an -express to James-Town. Three hundred and forty-nine people fell in this -general massacre; of which number, six were members of the Council. - - - - -EXPLOIT OF CAPTAIN STANDISH. - - -“The 23d of March (1623) being a yearly court day, we came to this -conclusion; that Captain Standish should take as many men as he thought -sufficient to make his party good, against all the Indians in the -Massachusetts Bay; and because it is impossible to deal with them upon -open defiance, but to take them in such traps as they lay for others; -therefore that he should pretend trade, as at other times; but first go -to the English, and acquaint them with the plot and the end of his own -coming, that by comparing it with their carriage toward them, he might -better judge of the certainty of it, and more fitly take opportunity to -revenge the same; but should forbear, if it were possible, till such time -as he could make sure of Wittuwamat, a bloody and bold villain, whose -head he had orders to bring with him. Upon this, Captain Standish made -choice of eight men, and would not take more, because he would prevent -jealousy. On the next day, before he could go, came one of Weston’s -company to us with a pack on his back, who made a pitiful narration of -their lamentable and weak estate, and of the Indians’ carriage; whose -boldness increased abundantly, insomuch as they would take the victuals -out of their pots, and eat before their faces; yea, if in any thing they -gainsayed them, they were ready to hold a knife at their breasts. He said -that, to give them content, they had hanged one of the company, who had -stolen their corn, and yet they regarded it not; that another of them -had turned savage; that their people had mostly forsaken the town, and -made their rendezvous where they got their victuals, because they would -not take pains to bring it home; that they had sold their clothes for -corn, and were ready to perish with hunger and cold, and that they were -dispersed into three companies, having scarcely any powder and shot. -As this relation was grievous to us, so it gave us good encouragement -to proceed; and the wind coming fair the next day, March 25th, Captain -Standish being now fitted, set forth for Massachusetts. - -“The Captain being come to Massachusetts, went first to the ship, but -found neither man nor dog therein. On the discharge of a musket, the -Master and some others shewed themselves, who were on shore gathering -ground-nuts and other food. After salutation, Captain Standish asked -them how they durst so leave the ship, and live in such security? they -answered, like men senseless of their own misery, that they feared not -the Indians, but lived and suffered them to lodge with them, not having -sword nor gun, nor needing the same. To which the Captain replied, -that if there were no cause, he was glad. But upon further inquiry, -understanding that those in whom John Sanders had reposed most confidence -were at the plantation, thither he went, and made known the Indians’ -purpose, and the end of his own coming; and told them that if they -durst not stay there, it was the intention of the Governor and people -of Plymouth, to receive them, till they could be better provided for. -These men answered that they could expect no better, and it was of God’s -mercy that they were not killed before his coming, desiring that he would -neglect no opportunity to proceed; hereupon he advised them to secrecy -and to order one third of their company that were farthest off to come -home, and on pain of death to keep there, himself allowing them a pint -of Indian corn, to a man, for a day, though that was spared out of our -feed. The weather proving very wet and stormy, it was the longer before -he could do any thing. - -“In the mean time an Indian came to him and brought some furs, but rather -to get what he could from the Captain than to trade; and though the -Captain carried things as smoothly as he could, yet, at his return, the -Indian reported that he saw by his eyes that he was angry in his heart, -and therefore began to suspect themselves discovered. This caused one -Pecksuot, who was a Pinese (chief) being a man of a notable spirit to -come to Hobamock (Standish’s Indian guide and interpreter) and tell him -that he understood the Captain was come to kill himself and the rest of -the savages there: ‘Tell him, said he, we know it, but fear him not, -neither will we shun him; but let him begin when he dare, he shall not -take us at unawares.’ Many times after, divers of them, severally or a -few together, came to the plantation, where they would whet and sharpen -the point of their knives before his face, and use many other insulting -gestures and speeches. Among the rest, Wittuwamat bragged of the -excellency of his knife, on the handle of which was pictured a woman’s -face. ‘But, said he, I have another at home, wherewith I have killed both -French and English, and that hath a man’s face on it, and by and by, -these two must be married.’ Further he said of that knife which he there -had, _Hinnaim namen, binnaim michen, matta cuts_, that is to say, _by and -by it should see, by and by it should eat, but not speak_. Also Pecksuot -being a man of greater stature than the Captain, told him ‘though you are -a great Captain, yet you are but a little man; though I be no Sachem, -yet I am a man of great strength and courage.’ These things the Captain -observed, but, for the present, bore them with patience. - -“On the next day, seeing he could not get many of them together at once, -but Pecksuot and Wittuwamat being together, with another man and the -brother of Wittuwamat a youth of eighteen, putting many tricks on the -weaker sort of men, and having about as many of his own men in the same -room, the Captain gave the word to his men; and the door being fast shut, -he begun himself with Pecksuot and snatching the knife from his neck, -after much struggling killed him therewith; the rest killed Wittuwamat -and the other man; the youth they took and hanged. It is incredible, how -many wounds these men received, before they died, not making any fearful -noise, but catching at their weapons, and striving to the last. Hobamock -stood by as a spectator, observing how our men demeaned themselves in the -action; which being ended, he, smiling, brake forth and said, ‘Yesterday -Pecksuot bragged of his own strength and stature, and told you that -though you were a great Captain, yet you were but a little man; but, -to-day, I see you are big enough to lay him on the ground.’ - -“There being some women, at the same time there, Captain Standish left -them, in the custody of Weston’s people, at the town; and sent word to -another company, to kill those Indian men that were among them. These -killed two more; himself with some of his own men, went to another place -and killed another; but through the negligence of one man, an Indian -escaped, who discovered and crossed their proceedings. - -“Captain Standish took one half of his men with one or two of Weston’s -and Hobamock, still seeking them. At length they espied a file of -Indians, making toward them; and, there being a small advantage in the -ground, by reason of a hill, both companies strove for it. Captain -Standish got it; whereupon the Indians retreated, and took each man his -tree, letting fly their arrows amain, especially at himself and Hobamock. -Whereupon Hobamock cast off his coat, and chased them so fast, that our -people were not able to hold way with him. They could have but one -certain mark, the arm and half the face of a notable villain, as he drew -his bow at Captain Standish, who with another, both discharged at him, -and brake his arm. Whereupon, they fled into a swamp; when they were -in the thicket, they parlied but got nothing but foul language. So our -Captain dared the Sachem to come out and fight like a man, showing how -base and woman-like he was, in tonguing it as he did; but he refused and -fled. So the Captain returned to the plantation; where he released the -women and took not their beaver coats from them, nor suffered the least -discourtesy to be offered them. - -“Now were Weston’s people resolved to leave the plantation, and go to -Monhegan, hoping to get passage and return to England with the fishing -ships. The Captain told them, that for his own part, he durst live there -with fewer men than they were; yet since they were otherwise minded, -according to his orders from the Governor and people of Plymouth, he -would help them with corn, which he did, scarce leaving himself more than -brought them home. Some of them disliked to go to Monhegan; and desiring -to go with him to Plymouth, he took them into the shallop; and seeing -the others set sail, and clear of Massachusetts Bay, he took leave and -returned to Plymouth, bringing the head of Wittuwamat, which was set up -on the fort. - -“This sudden and unexpected execution, hath so terrified and amazed the -other people who intended to join with the Massachusencks against us, -that they forsook their houses, running to and fro like men distracted; -living in swamps, and other desert places, and so brought diseases -upon themselves, whereof many are dead; as Canacum, Sachem of Manomet; -Aspinet, of Nauset; and Ianough, of Matachiest. This Sachem, (Ianough) -in the midst of these distractions, said, ‘the God of the English was -offended with them, and would destroy them in his anger.’ From one of -these places, a boat was sent with presents to the Governor, hoping -thereby to work their peace; but the boat was lost, and three of the -people drowned; only one escaped, who returned; so that none of them -durst come among us.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -SINGULAR EXPEDIENT OF COLUMBUS - - -In one of his later voyages at sea he met with tempestuous weather of -long continuance, in which his ships were so shattered, that with the -utmost difficulty he kept them above water, till he ran them ashore on -the island of Jamaica. By his extraordinary address, he procured from the -natives two of their largest canoes; in which two of his most faithful -friends, Mendez and Fiesco, accompanied by some of his sailors and a -few Indians, embarked for Hispaniola. After encountering the greatest -difficulties in their passage, they carried tidings of his misfortune to -Ovando, and solicited his aid. The merciless wretch detained them eight -months, without an answer; during which time, Columbus suffered the -severest hardships, from the discontent of his company, and the want of -provisions. By the hospitality of the natives, he at first received such -supplies, as they were able to spare; but the long continuance of these -guests had diminished their store, and the insolence of the mutineers -gave a check to their friendship. In this extremity, the fertile -invention of Columbus suggested an expedient which proved successful. -He knew that a total eclipse of the moon was at hand, which would be -visible in the evening. On the preceding day, he sent for the principal -Indians, to speak with them, on a matter of the utmost importance. -Being assembled, he directed his interpreter to tell them, that the -God of heaven, whom he worshipped, was angry with them, for withholding -provision from him, and would punish them with famine and pestilence; -as a token of which, the moon would, in the evening, appear of an -angry and bloody colour. Some of them received his speech with terror, -and others with indifference; but when the moon rose, and the eclipse -increased as she advanced from the horizon, they came in crowds, loaded -with provision, and begged the Admiral to intercede with his God, for -the removal of his anger. Columbus retired to his cabin; and when the -eclipse began to go off, he came out and told them, that he had prayed -to his God, and had received this answer; that if they would be good for -the future, and bring him provision as he should want, God would forgive -them; and as a token of it, the moon would put on her usual brightness. -They gave him thanks, and promised compliance; and whilst he remained on -the island there was no more want of provision. - -[Illustration] - - - - -ADVENTURES OF JAMES CARTIER IN CANADA. - - -After spending some time in exploring the northern coast, to find an -opening to the northward; in the beginning of September, 1535, he sailed -up the river St. Lawrence and discovered several islands; one of which, -from the multitude of filberts, he called Coudres; and another, from the -vast quantity of grapes, he named Bacchus, (now Orleans.) This island was -full of inhabitants who subsisted by fishing. - -When the ships had come to anchor between the N. W. side of the island -and the main, Cartier went on shore with his two young Savages. The -people of the country were at first afraid of them; but hearing the -youths speak to them in their own language, they became sociable, and -brought eels and other fish, with a quantity of Indian corn in ears, -for the refreshment of their new guests; in return for which, they were -presented with such European baubles as were pleasing to them. - -The next day, Donacona, the prince of the place, came to visit them, -attended by twelve boats; but, keeping ten of them at a distance, he -approached with two only, containing sixteen men. In the true spirit of -hospitality, he made a speech, accompanied with significant gestures, -welcoming the French to his country and offering his service to them. -The young savages, Taignoagni and Domagaia answered him, reporting all -which they had seen in France, at which he appeared to be pleased. -Then approaching the Captain, who held out his hand, he kissed it, and -laid it round his own neck, in token of friendship. Cartier, on his -part, entertained Donacona with bread and wine, and they parted mutually -pleased. - -The next day Cartier went up in his boat to find a harbour for his ships; -the season being so far advanced that it became necessary to secure them. -At the west end of the isle of Bacchus, he found “a goodly and pleasant -sound, where is a little river and haven; about three fathom deep at high -water.” To this he gave the name of St. Croix, and determined there to -lay up his ships. - -Near this place was a village called Stadacona, of which Donacona was -the Lord. It was environed with forest trees, some of which bore fruit; -and under the trees, was a growth of wild hemp. As Cartier was returning -to his ships, he had another specimen of the hospitable manners of the -natives. A company of people, of both sexes, met him on the shore of the -little river, singing and dancing up to their knees in water. In return -for their courtesy, he gave them knives and beads; and they continued -their music till he was beyond hearing it. - -When Cartier had brought his ships to the harbour and secured them, he -intimated his intention to pass in his boats up the river to Hochelaga. -Donacona was loath to part with him; and invented several artifices to -prevent his going thither. Among others, he contrived to dress three -of his men in black and white skins, with horns on their heads, and -their faces besmeared with coal, to make them resemble infernal spirits. -They were put into a canoe and passed by the ships; brandishing their -horns and making an unintelligible harangue. Donacona, with his people, -pursued and took them, on which they fell down as if dead. They were -carried ashore into the woods, and all the savages followed them. A long -discourse ensued, and the conclusion of the farce was, that these demons -had brought news from the God of Hochelaga, that his country was so full -of snow and ice, that whoever should adventure thither would perish with -the cold. The artifice afforded diversion to the French, but was too -thin to deceive them. Cartier determined to proceed; and on the 19th of -September, with his pinnace and two boats, began his voyage up the river -to Hochelaga. - -Among the woods on the margin of the river were many vines loaded -with ripe grapes, than which nothing could be a more welcome sight to -Frenchmen, though the fruit was not so delicious as they had been used -to taste in their own country. Along the banks were many huts of the -natives; who made signs of joy as they passed; presented them with fish; -piloted them through narrow channels; carried them ashore on their backs, -and helped them to get off their boats when aground. Some presented their -children to them, and such as were of proper age were accepted. - -The water at that time of the year being low, their passage was rendered -difficult; but by the friendly assistance of the natives they surmounted -the obstructions. On the 28th of September they passed the rapids between -the islands in the upper part of the lake Angoleme, (now called St. -Peter’s) and on the second of October they arrived at the island of -Hochelaga; where they had been expected, and preparations were made to -give them a welcome reception. About a thousand persons came to meet -them, singing and dancing, the men on one side, the women on the other, -and the children in a distinct body. Presents of fish and other victuals -were brought, and in return were given knives, beads and other trinkets. -The Frenchmen lodged the first night in their boats, and the natives -watched on the shore, dancing round their fires during the whole night. - -The next morning Cartier, with twenty-five of his company, went to visit -the town, and were met on the way by a person of distinction, who bade -them welcome. To him they gave two hatchets and two knives, and hung over -his neck a cross which they taught him to kiss. As they proceeded, they -passed through groves of oak, from which the acorns were fallen and lay -thick on the ground. After this they came to fields of ripe corn, some of -which was gathered. In the midst of these fields was situate the town of -Hochelaga. - -It was of a round form, encompassed with three lines of palisades, -through which was one entrance, well secured with stakes and bars. On the -inside was a rampart of timber, to which were ascents by ladders, and -heaps of stones were laid in proper places for defence. In the town were -about fifty long huts built with stakes and covered with bark. In the -middle of each hut was a fire, round which were lodging places, floored -with bark and covered with skins. In the upper part was a scaffold, on -which they dried and preserved their corn. To prepare it for eating, -they pounded it in wooden mortars, and having mixed it with water, baked -it on hot stones. Besides corn they had beans, squashes and pumpkins. -They dried their fish and preserved them in troughs. These people lived -chiefly by tillage and fishing, and seldom went far from home. Those on -the lower parts of the river were more given to hunting, and considered -the Lord of Hochelaga as their sovereign, to whom they paid tribute. - -When the new guests were conducted to an open square in the centre of the -town, the females came to them, rubbing their hands and faces, weeping -with joy at their arrival, and bringing their children to be touched by -the strangers. They spread mats for them on the ground, whilst the men -seated themselves in a large circle on the outside. The King was then -brought in a litter, on the shoulders of ten men, and placed on a mat -next to the French Captain. He was about fifty years old, and had no -mark of distinction but a coronet made of porcupine’s quills dyed red; -which he took off and gave to the Captain, requesting him to rub his -arms and legs which were trembling with a palsy. Several persons, blind, -lame, and withered with age, were also brought to be touched; as if they -supposed that their new guests were messengers from heaven invested with -a power of healing diseases. Cartier gratified them as well as he could, -by laying his hands on them and repeating some devotional passages from a -service book, which he had in his pocket; accompanying his ejaculations -with significant gestures, and lifting up his eyes to heaven. The natives -attentively observed and imitated all his motions. - -Having performed this ceremony, he desired men, women and children to -arrange themselves in separate bodies. To the men he gave hatchets, to -the women beads, and to the children rings. He then ordered his drums -and trumpets to sound, which highly pleased the company and set them to -dancing. - -Being desirous of ascending the hill, under which the town was built, the -natives conducted them to the summit; where they were entertained with a -most extensive and beautiful prospect of mountains, woods, islands and -waters. They observed the course of the river above, and some falls of -water in it; and the natives informed them that they might sail on it for -three months; that it ran through two or three great lakes, beyond which -was a sea of fresh water, to which they knew of no bounds; and that on -the other side of the mountains there was another river which ran in a -contrary direction to the south-west, through a country full of delicious -fruits and free from snow and ice; that there was found such metal as -the Captain’s _silver_ whistle and the haft of a dagger belonging to one -of the company which was gilt with _gold_. Being shown some copper, they -pointed to the northward, and said it came from Saguenay. To this hill -Cartier gave the name of _Montreal_, which it has ever since retained. - -[Illustration] - - - - -MILLY FRANCIS. - - -Duncan M’Krimmon, (a resident of Milledgeville, a Georgia militia man, -stationed at Fort Gadsden,) being out one morning on a fishing excursion, -in attempting to return, missed his way, and was several days lost in -the surrounding wilderness. After wandering about in various directions -he was espied and captured by a party of hostile Indians, headed by the -well known prophet Francis. The Indians having obtained the satisfaction -they wanted respecting the determination of government, the position of -the American army, &c. they began to prepare for the intended sacrifice. -M’Krimmon was bound to a stake, and the ruthless savages having shaved -his head and reduced his body to a state of nudity, formed themselves -into a circle and danced round him some hours, yelling most horribly. The -youngest daughter of the prophet, about fifteen years of age, remained -sad and silent the whole time. She participated not in the general joy, -but was evidently, even to the affrighted prisoner, much pained at the -savage scene she was compelled to witness. When the burning torches were -about to be applied to the fagots which encompassed the prisoner, and -the fatal tomahawk was raised to terminate forever his mortal existence, -Milly Francis, (for that was her name,) like an angel of mercy, placed -herself between it and death, resolutely bidding the astonished -executioner, if he thirsted for human blood, to shed hers; being -determined, she said, not to survive the prisoner’s death. A momentary -pause was produced by this unexpected occurrence, and she took advantage -of the circumstance to implore upon her knees the pity of the ferocious -father, who finally yielded to her wishes; with the intention, however, -it is suspected, of murdering them both, if he could not sell M’Krimmon -to the Spaniards; which was luckily effected a few days after at St. -Marks, for seven gallons and a half of rum. As long as M’Krimmon remained -a prisoner his benefactress continued to show him acts of kindness. The -fortune of war since placed her in the power of the white people, being -compelled, with a number of others of her tribe who were in a starving -condition, to surrender themselves prisoners. As soon as this fact was -known to M’Krimmon, in manifestation of a due sense of the obligation -which he owed to the woman who saved his life, at the hazard of her own, -he sought her to alleviate her misfortune, and to offer her marriage; but -Milly would not consent to become his wife as a consideration of having -saved his life, declaring that she did no more than her duty, and that -her intercessions were the same as they would ever have been on similar -occasions. - - - - -ADVENTURES OF SIMON BUTLER AMONG THE INDIANS. - - -Simon Kenton, _alias_ Butler, from humble beginnings, made himself -conspicuous by distinguished services and achievements, in the first -settlement of this country, and ought to be recorded as one of the -patriarchs of Kentucky. He was born in Virginia, in 1753. He grew -to maturity without being able to read or write; but from his early -exploits, he seems to have been endowed with feelings, which the -educated, and those born in the upper walks of life appear to suppose -a monopoly reserved for themselves. It is recorded of him, that at the -age of nineteen he had a violent contest with another competitor for the -favour of the lady of his love. She refused to make an election between -them; and the subject of this notice indignantly exiled himself from -his native place. After various peregrinations on the long rivers of -the west, he fixed himself in Kentucky, and soon became a distinguished -partizan against the savages. In 1774, he joined himself to Lord Dunmore, -and was appointed one of his spies. He made various excursions, and -performed important services in this employ. He finally selected a place -for improvement on the site where Washington now is. Returning one day -from hunting, he found one of his companions slain by the Indians, and -his body thrown into the fire. He left Washington in consequence, and -joined himself to Colonel Clark in his fortunate and gallant expedition -against Vincennes and Kaskaskia. He was sent by that commander with -despatches for Kentucky. He passed through the streets of Vincennes, then -in possession of the British and Indians, without discovery. Arriving at -White river, he and his party made a raft, on which to cross with their -guns and baggage, driving their horses into the river, and compelling -them to swim it. A party of Indians was concealed on the opposite bank, -who took possession of the horses as they mounted the bank, after -crossing the river. Butler and his company seeing this, continued -to float down the river on their raft, without coming to land. They -concealed themselves in the bushes until night, when they crossed the -river, pursued their journey, and delivered their despatches. - -After this, Butler made a journey of discovery to the northern regions -of the Ohio country, and was made prisoner by the Indians. They painted -him black, as is their custom, when a victim is devoted to torture; and -informed him that he was destined to be burned at Chillicothe. Meanwhile, -for their own amusement, and as a prelude to his torture, they manacled -him hand and foot, placed him on an unbridled and unbroken horse, and -turned the animal loose, driving it off at its utmost speed, with shouts, -delighted with witnessing its mode of managing under its living burden. -The horse, unable to shake off this new and strange incumbrance, made -for the thickest covert of woods and brambles, with the speed of the -winds. It is easy to conjecture the position and sufferings of the -victim. The terrified animal exhausted itself in fruitless efforts to -shake off its load, and worn down and subdued, brought Butler back to the -camp amidst the exulting yells of the savages. - -Having arrived within a mile of Chillicothe, they halted, took Butler -from his horse, and tied him to a stake, where he remained twenty-four -hours in one position. He was taken from the stake to ‘run the gauntlet.’ -The Indian mode of managing this kind of torture was as follows: The -inhabitants of the tribe, old and young, were placed in parallel lines, -armed with clubs and switches. The victim was to make his way to the -council house, through these files, every member of which struggled -to beat him, as he passed, as severely as possible. If he reached the -council house alive, he was to be spared. In the lines were nearly six -hundred Indians, and Butler had to make his way almost a mile in the -endurance of this infernal sport. He was started by a blow; but soon -broke through the files, and had almost reached the council house, when -a stout warrior knocked him down with a club. He was severely beaten in -this position, and taken back again into custody. - -It seems incredible, that they sometimes rescued their prisoners from -these tortures, adopted them, and treated them with the utmost lenity -and even kindness. At other times, ingenuity was exhausted to invent -tortures, and every renewed endurance of the victim seemed to stimulate -their vengeance to new discoveries of cruelty. Butler was one of these -ill-fated subjects. No way satisfied with what they had done, they -marched him from village to village, to give all a spectacle of his -sufferings. He ran the gauntlet thirteen times. He made various attempts -to escape; and in one instance would have effected it, had he not been -arrested by some savages who were accidentally returning to the village -from which he was escaping. It was finally determined to burn him at the -lower Sandusky, but an apparent accident changed his destiny. - -In passing to the stake, the procession went by the cabin of Simon Girty, -who had just returned from an unsuccessful expedition to the frontiers -of Pennsylvania. The wretch burned with disappointment and revenge; and -hearing that there was a white man going to the torture, determined to -wreak his vengeance on him. He found the unfortunate Butler, threw him -to the ground, and began to beat him. Butler, who instantly recognized -in Girty a former companion of his youth, made himself known to him. -His savage heart relented. He raised him up, and promised to use his -influence to save him. Girty had a council called, and he moved the -savages to give Butler up to him. He took the unfortunate man home, -fed, and clothed him, and Butler began to recruit from his wounds -and torture. But the relenting of the savages in his favour was only -momentary. After five days, they repented of their relaxation in his -favour, reclaimed him, and marched him to Lower Sandusky to be burned, -according to their original purpose. By a surprising coincidence, he -there met the Indian agent from Detroit, who from motives of humanity, -exerted his influence with the savages for his release, and took him with -him to Detroit. Here he was paroled by the governor. He escaped, and by a -march of thirty days through the wilderness, reached Kentucky. - -[Illustration] - - - - -INGENUITY IN TORTURE. - - -An instance of the keenness of Indian ingenuity, in the invention of -original modes of torture, is given in Flint’s Indian Wars. The Indians -captured a young man of the name of Moses Hewitt, who lived on the -Little Hock hocking, and was a member of the Marietta settlement. He -was remarkable for the suppleness of his limbs, and the swiftness of -his running. The Indians tested him with their champion racers, and, -although he could not have run with much spirit, under his depressing -circumstances, he easily vanquished them all in swiftness. They affected -to be pleased, but their envy was piqued. They were destitute of -provisions, and wished to secure their swift-footed prisoner, while they -were occupied in their hunt. With this view, and probably to torture -him at the same time, they fastened his wrists by crossing them, and -binding them firmly with a cord. They then tied his arms to a stake, so -as partly to raise the upper part of his body. They fastened his legs in -the same way, and partly cut off a young sapling, bending it down, so -that the weight of the lower part of his body would be a counterpoise to -the elastic force of the curved tree. Thus was he partially raised by his -hands and feet, in a way most horribly painful; and yet in a position -where death would be slow in arriving to his release. It was like the -torture of killing by dropping water on the head. Fortunately the young -man had remarkably slender wrist bones. When left alone to meditate upon -his terrible situation, he contrived, not without disengaging the skin -and flesh from his wrists, to disentangle his arms from their manacles, -and finally his legs. He picked up a little of the scraps of jerked meat, -which the Indians had left. To baffle their pursuit and that of their -dogs, he ran on the bodies of fallen trees, and meandered his course in -every direction. Such was the adroitness of his management, that he put -them completely at fault, escaped them, and came in to the settlement -of Marietta, wounded, his flesh torn and mangled, and emaciated to a -skeleton—a living proof how much man can survive before he suffers the -mortal pang. He had been absent fourteen days. - -[Illustration] - - - - -OSCEOLA. - - -On one occasion, Osceola acted as guide to a party of horsemen, and -finding that, at starting, they proceeded slowly, he enquired the cause. -On being told that it was on his account, with one of those smiles he -alone can give, he bade them proceed more rapidly. They put spurs to -their steeds, and he, a-foot, kept up with them during the entire route, -nor did he exhibit the slightest symptoms of fatigue, at the close of -day, but arrived at the point proposed, as early as the mounted body. To -Col. Gadsden, sole Commissioner at the Treaty of Payne’s Landing, Osceola -rendered good service, at the head of thirty or forty warriors, posting -himself nearer to the Colonel’s position than the other Indians, and -saying, he was more like the white man than they. He did not sign the -treaty then and there made, nor did he refuse so to do. The fact is, he -was never asked to subscribe his name thereto, being at that time, but a -Tustenugge and of little note. This treaty must not be confounded with -the subsequent agreement that Osceola finally signed, and into which he -is said to have plunged his knife, when called on for his signature. The -negotiations at Payne’s landing were in the time of Tuckasee Emathla, or -the Ground Mole Warrior, Chief of the Micasuky tribe. At that date it was -not known of Powell, as Cotton Mather says of Roger Williams, that “the -whole country was soon like to be set on fire by the rapid motion of a -wind mill in the head of this one man.” - - - - -GRATITUDE OF OSCEOLA. - - -Osceola’s agency, and that of his Lieutenant Tom, in Omathla’s death, -and his killing Gen. Thompson, with the rifle presented him by the -General, militate against the favourable estimate of his character. But -that all his goodly feelings were not utterly eradicated, is proven -by an incident, in the interview with Gen. Gaines’ command. On that -occasion, Osceola anxiously inquired after Lieut. John Grahame, and on -being informed that he was wounded, stoutly denied it. On being asked -why he was so positive that Lieut. G. was unhurt, he replied that he had -imperatively ordered his people never to molest that young man, and he -knew no one who would dare disobey him; none should, and live! It was -then admitted, that though the brothers, Grahame, had been wounded, yet -Lt. G. had escaped injury; at which admission Osceola greatly joyed. It -seems that Powell has a little daughter, to whom Lt. G. was kind, and had -presented with frocks, in which the young girl, who grew very fond of -him, always insisted on being dressed, whenever she perceived Lieut. G. -(for whom she often looked out) coming to visit her. Osceola’s motive in -sparing Lieut. G. was gratitude for attention to his child, which he also -endeavored to repay by teaching the Lieut. the Indian language, for he -spoke a little English, and was very intelligent. - - - - -THE CROWNING OF POWHATAN. - - -The Virginia company in London, deceived by false reports, and misled -by their own sanguine imaginations, had conceived an expectation not -only of finding precious metals in the country, but of discovering the -South Sea, from the mountains at the head of James-river; and it was -thought, that the journey thither, might be performed in eight or ten -days. For the purpose of making this capital discovery, they put on -board Newport’s ship, a barge capable of being taken to pieces, and put -together again at pleasure. This barge was to make a voyage to the head -of the river, then to be carried in pieces across the mountains, and to -descend the rivers which were supposed to run westward to the South Sea. -To facilitate this plan, it was necessary to gain the favour of Powhatan, -through whose country the passage must be made; and as means of winning -him, a royal present was brought over, consisting of a bason and ewer, -a bed and furniture, a chair of state, a suit of scarlet clothes, with -a cloak and a crown, all which were to be presented to him in due form; -and the crown placed on his head, with as much solemnity as possible. To -a person who knew the country and its inhabitants so well as Smith, this -project appeared chimerical, and the means whereby it was to be carried -on, dangerous. With a small quantity of copper and a few beads, he could -have kept Powhatan in good humour, and made an advantage of it for the -colony, whereas a profusion of presents he knew would but increase his -pride and insolence. The project of travelling over unknown mountains -with men already weakened by sickness, and worn out with fatigue, in -a hot climate, and in the midst of enemies, who might easily cut off -their retreat, was too romantic even for his sanguine and adventurous -spirit. His opinion upon the matter cannot be expressed in more pointed -language, than he used in a letter to the company. “If the quartered -boat was burned to ashes, _one_ might carry her in a bag, but as she is, -five hundred cannot, to a navigable place above the falls.” His dissent -however was ineffectual, and when he found that the voice of the council -was for executing it, he lent his assistance to effect as much of it as -was practicable. - -Previously to their setting out, he undertook, with four men only, to -carry notice to Powhatan of the intended present, and invite him to come -to James-Town, that he might receive it there. Having travelled by land -twelve miles to Werocomoco, on Pamunky (York) river, where he expected -to meet Powhatan, and not finding him there, whilst a messenger was -dispatched thirty miles for him; his daughter Pocahontas, entertained -Smith and his company with a dance, which for its singularity, merits a -particular description. - -In an open plain, a fire being made, the gentlemen were seated by it. -Suddenly a noise was heard in the adjacent wood, which made them fly -to their arms, and seize on two or three old men, as hostages for their -own security, imagining that they were betrayed. Upon this the young -princess came running to Smith, and passionately embracing him, offered -herself to be killed, if any harm should happen to him or his company. -Her assurances, seconded by all the Indians present, removed their -fears. The noise which had alarmed them, was made by thirty girls, who -were preparing for the intended ceremony. Immediately they made their -appearance, with no other covering than a girdle of green leaves and -their skins painted, each one of a different colour. Their leader had -a pair of buck’s horns on her head, an otter’s skin as her girdle, and -another on one arm; a bow and arrow in the other hand, and a quiver at -her back. The rest of them had horns on their heads, and a wooden sword -or staff in their hands. With shouting and singing, they formed a ring -round the fire, and performed a circular dance for about an hour, after -which they retired in the same order as they had advanced. The dance was -followed by a feast, at which the savage nymphs were as eager with their -caresses as with their attendance; and this being ended, they conducted -the gentlemen to their lodging by the light of fire brands. - -The next day Powhatan arrived, and Smith delivered the message from his -father, Newport (as he always called him) to this effect. “That he had -brought him from the King of England, a royal present, and wished to -see him at James-Town, that he might deliver it to him; promising to -assist him in prosecuting his revenge against the Monacans, whose country -they would penetrate even to the sea beyond the mountains.” To which the -savage prince with equal subtility and haughtiness, answered, “If your -King has sent me a present, I also am a King, and am on my own land. I -will stay here eight days. Your father must come to me, I will not go to -him, nor to your fort. As for the Monacans, I am able to revenge myself. -If you have heard of salt water beyond the mountains, from any of my -people, they have deceived you.” Then with a stick he drew a plan of that -region on the ground; and after many compliments the conference ended. - -The present being put on board the boats, was carried down James-river -and up the Pamunky, whilst Newport, with fifty men, went across by land -and met the boats, in which he passed the river, and held the proposed -interview. All things being prepared for the ceremony of coronation, the -present was brought from the boats; the bason and ewer were deposited, -the bed and chair were set up, the scarlet suit and cloak were put on, -though not till Namontac (an Indian youth whom Newport had carried to -England and brought back again) had assured him that these habiliments -would do him no harm; but they had great difficulty in persuading him to -receive the crown, nor would he bend his knee, or incline his head in -the least degree. After many attempts, and with actual pressing on his -shoulders, they at last made him stoop a little and put it on. Instantly, -a signal being given, the men in the boats fired a volley, at which the -monarch started with horror, imagining that a design was forming to -destroy him in the summit of his glory; but being assured that it was -meant as a compliment, his fear subsided, and in return for the baubles -of royalty received from King James, he desired Newport to present him -his old fur mantle and deer skin shoes, which in his estimation were -doubtless a full equivalent; since all this finery could not prevail -on the wary chief to allow them guides for the discovery of the inland -country, or to approve their design of visiting it. Thus disappointed -they returned to James-Town, determined to proceed without his assistance. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration: Florida Indians. - -Page 167.] - - - - -THE FLORIDA INDIANS. - - -The Palarches, Eamuses and Kaloosas, were the ancient possessors of -Florida, and are all extinct. The present Florida Indians are the remains -of that ancient and warlike tribe on the Mississippi, which being almost -extirpated by the French, retreated along the Northern coast of the Gulf -of Mexico, and united with broken bands of Biloxies, Red Sticks, and -runaway Creeks, called Seminoles. The largest portion of these Indians -are Lower Creeks, and are of the most dissolute, daring, and abandoned of -that tribe. - -The word Seminole signifies a wanderer or runaway, or it means a wild -people or outsettlers, the ancestors of the tribe having detached -themselves from the main body of the Creeks, and dwelt remotely, wherever -the inducements of more game, or greater scope for freedom of action, -might casually lead them. They settled in Florida about 115 years ago. - -That this is the period of their becoming a separate community, is -confirmed by the connection of their history with that of the Yemasees, -of whom there occur frequent notices in the account of the early -settlement of Georgia and South Carolina. - -In a talk, which the Seminoles about the year 1820, transmitted to the -American government, they say, alluding to their ancient independence: -“An hundred summers have seen the Seminole warrior reposing undisturbed -under the shade of his live oak, and the suns of an hundred winters -have risen on his ardent pursuit of the buck and the bear, with none to -question his bounds, or dispute his range.” - -The greater part of East Florida appears to have been originally in -possession of the Yemasees—a powerful people, who not only occupied this -province, but spread themselves over Georgia, and into the limits of -South Carolina, which on its first demarcation was bounded on the South -by the Altamaha. Some of the tribes resided within the present limits of -that State, in and about Beaufort and Savannah River, and also the Sea -Islands. Bartram relates that these people, after a hardy contest, and -many bloody defeats, were nearly exterminated by their ancient enemies -the Creeks, who had a tradition, that a beautiful race of Indians, whose -women they called Daughters of the Sun, resided amidst the recesses of -the great Oakefanokee wilderness, where they enjoyed perpetual felicity, -in ever blooming islands, inaccessible to human approach. - -Bartram with probability supposes, that this fable took its rise from a -fugitive remnant of the Yemasees, who found a refuge in this swamp, and -were perhaps, after a lapse of years, accidentally seen by some of the -hunters of the Creek nation. - -There is frequent mention, in the early colonial history of South -Carolina of wars between the first settlers and the Yemasees, the latter -having been excited to attack the Colony by the Spanish authorities in -St. Augustine. - -A formidable war was kindled by these people, which would have proved -destructive to the infant settlement of Carolina, had not timely -intimation of the danger been obtained by means of one of the outsettlers -to whom Sanute, a chief of the hostile Indians, from a feeling of -friendship, gave notice of the impending attack. On this occasion the -Indians were defeated by Gov. Grant, and driven out of the province. Dr. -Ramsay mentions that the Yemasees retired into Florida, to which country -they seem to have been subsequently restricted by the increasing power of -the whites, and by the Creeks. No further mention of them occurs, until -the Seminoles came into notice, by whom they were conquered, and nearly -exterminated, in 1721, in the manner mentioned by Bartram. When in the -year 1715, the Yemasees were driven within the limits of Florida, they -became slaves to the Seminoles. Another account states, that the Yemasees -left St. Augustine in a body, in 1722; or rather were expelled by the -Spaniards, who essayed in vain to compel them to labours which were -regarded as degrading drudgeries by the warriors of Yemasee. - -The Yemasees were remarkably black people, and the Ocklewahaw tribe, -who are of a deeper shade than the Seminoles, are descendants of the -conquered race. The chief of the Ocklewahaws, Yaha Hadgo, who was killed -by General Shelton in the campaign of ’36, was very dark; but generally, -the Seminole’s complexion is like that of the Creeks. - -Under King Payne, grandfather of Micconope, (the present Chief) the -Seminoles invaded and achieved the conquest of the territories they -lately occupied. He lived to near 100 years of age, and married a Yemasee -woman, his slave, by whom he had the late chief Payne, who bore, in the -darkness of his complexion, a proof of his Yemasee descent. - -The Indians were formerly very numerous in Florida, perhaps as much so -as in Mexico. They are now reduced to comparatively small bands, in few -villages. - -[Illustration] - - - - -GENERAL JACKSON’S CONQUEST OF THE INDIANS. - - -An artful impostor, Tecumseh of the Shawnees, a man of most extraordinary -abilities and consummate address, conceived the bold design of an union -of the red against the white population of America, under a hope that by -a general and continued assault along the whole line of our frontiers, -the future extension of settlements might be checked, if the present -inhabitants could not be driven into the ocean. Assuming the attributes -of a prophet, and, among other things, assisted by the fortuitous -occurrence of an earthquake, of which he had hazarded a prediction, a -confidence began to be reposed in the sacredness of his character and -mission. A majority of the Creek nation were enlisted in his cause, -and the storm of an exterminating savage war hung over the West. Its -first explosion was on Fort Mims, a rude stockade defence, into which -the Southern inhabitants of Alabama had lately retreated for security. -More than 300 persons, including women and children, fell victims to -savage barbarity. “The slaughter was indiscriminate; mercy was extended -to none, and the tomahawk often transfixed mother and child at the same -stroke. But seventeen of the whole number in the fort, escaped to give -intelligence of the dreadful catastrophe.” In the midst of an alarm which -such an inhuman outrage was calculated to excite, the eyes of Tennessee -were turned on Jackson. Though confined at this period to his house by -a fractured arm, his characteristic firmness did not desert him, and he -cheerfully yielded to a second call for his services in the cause of his -country. Two thousand militia were ordered to assemble at Fayetteville in -Tennessee, in addition to five hundred cavalry previously raised under -the command of Gen. Coffee. - -The alarming accounts of the concentration of the forces of the enemy, -with a view of deluging the frontier in blood, compelled General Jackson -(though individually in a most disabled state of body) to take the field -before the ranks of his army had been filled, or his troops organized. - -With this undisciplined force, he prepared for active operations; but the -wisest dispositions were counteracted, and all his movements embarrassed, -by the failure of unfeeling and speculating contractors. - -The enemy were gathering strength, and on the advance; they had already -threatened a fort of Indian allies. In this situation, to retreat was to -abandon our frontier citizens to the mercy of savages; to advance, was -with the certainty of exposure to every privation. - -Jackson hesitated not on the alternative, and with but six days’ rations -of meat, and less than two of meal, he moved with his army upon the -Coosa; and, with Coffee’s command, gave a most decisive blow to the enemy -at Tallushatchee, in less than twenty-five days after he had marched -from the rendezvous at Fayetteville. The loss of the Creeks in this -engagement, was 186 killed, and 84 prisoners. - -Though compelled by the want of supplies to return to his depots on the -frontier, we find him in less than six weeks in the field, at the well -fought battle of Talledega, and in the subsequent conflicts at Emuckfau, -Enotichopco, and Tohopka, annihilating the hopes and expectations of the -Creeks, and crushing the hydra of savage hostility in the South. - -[Illustration] - - - - -MASSACRE OF MR. COOLY’S FAMILY. - - -On the 6th of January, 1836, whilst Mr. Cooly was from home, a party -of about thirty Indians made an attack upon his family, settled at -New River, about 12 miles from Cape Florida. They murdered his wife, -three children, and a Mr. Flinton, who was employed as their teacher. -The children were sitting in the hall, getting their lessons, when the -Indians came up by stealth, and shot them down. Flinton was killed on -the threshold of the door; the little girl about eleven years old was -found dead, with her book in her hand. As soon as the firing commenced, -Mrs. Cooly snatched up her infant child, and endeavoured to effect their -escape by a back way. She was shot at a distance of about one hundred and -fifty yards from the house: the ball entered between her shoulders, and -after passing through her breast, broke the arm of the child which was -cradled on her bosom. The little boy, about eight or nine years of age, -was found in the yard with his skull and arm fractured, probably done -with a billet of wood. Having destroyed all of the white inhabitants, -they shot the cattle, plundered the house of property worth from one -thousand to twelve hundred dollars, took away two negroes and all the -horses, and finally set fire to the house. - -The circumstances attending the murder of Mr. Cooly’s family, are well -calculated to illustrate the treachery of the Indian character. He -had resided among them for many years, spoke their language well, and -treated them with uniform kindness and hospitality. Indeed, such was his -friendship for them, that he named two of his sons after their chiefs -Alnomock and Montezuma. His wife had once been a captive among them, -and was esteemed a great favourite. Standing in this relation, and -confiding in their professions of friendship, which lulled him into a -fatal security, he left his home for a few days, and returned to find it -desolate. It is a remarkable fact, that the villains who perpetrated the -deed of death, had not the hardihood to scalp the poor mother and her -three innocent children. Was it the recollection of former friendship, -that induced them thus to spare? Or were they conscious that their own -savage colleagues would have blushed for the chivalry of those warriors, -who could find no work more befitting their tomahawks and scalping -knives, than the cruel butchery of women and children? Did they fear that -some chief, more feeling than the rest, would ask, - - “Oh wherefore strike the beautiful, the young, - So innocent, unharming? Lift the knife, - If need be, ’gainst the warrior; but forbear - The trembling woman.” - -The unfortunate schoolmaster shared a different fate. To him they owed -no obligations of friendship; he was a man, and as such, capable of -resistance; his scalp was therefore torn from him, and borne off as a -testimony of their savage triumph. - - - - -PHYSICAL CHARACTER OF THE INDIANS. - - -In their physical character, the American Indians are considered by -Blumenbach as forming a particular variety of the human species, -differing, though not very widely, from the Mongolian. Believing, as we -do, that the New World was peopled from the Old, and considering that the -Mongol race was situated nearest to the point where Asia and America come -almost into contact, we incline to ascribe these variations merely to a -change of outward circumstances. The face is broad and flat, with high -cheek-bones; more rounded and arched, however, than in the allied type, -without having the visage expanded to the same breadth. The forehead -is generally low; the eyes deep, small, and black; the nose rather -diminutive, but prominent, with wide nostrils; and the mouth large, with -somewhat thick lips. The stature, which varies remarkably throughout the -Continent, is, in the quarter of which we treat, generally above the -middle size. This property, however, is confined to the men, the females -being usually below that standard, a fact which may be confidently -ascribed to the oppressive drudgery they are compelled to undergo. -The limbs, in both sexes, are well proportioned; and few instances of -deformity ever occur. - -The colour of the skin in the Indian is generally described as red -or copper-coloured; or, according to Mr. Lawrence’s more precise -definition, it is “an obscure orange or rusty iron colour, not unlike -the bark of the cinnamon-tree.” Although we believe that climate is -the chief cause of the diversities in human colour, yet it is certain -that all savages are dark-tinted. This peculiarity may be accounted for -by their constant exposure to the inclemency of the seasons, to sun, -air, and tempests; and the same cause in civilized countries produces -a similar effect on sailors, as well as on those who work constantly -in the fields. In the Old World, the intermediate tints between white -and black are generally varieties of brown and yellow. The red tint is -considered characteristic of the New World. We must, however, observe, -that the traveller Adair, who lived upward of thirty years among the -Indians, positively asserts that it is artificially produced; that in -the oil, grease, and other unctuous substances with which they keep -their skin constantly smeared, there is dissolved the juice of a root -which gradually tinges it of this colour. He states, that a white man, -who spent some years with the natives, and adorned himself in their -manner, completely acquired it. Charlevoix seems also to lean to the same -opinion. Weld, though rather inclined to dissent from it, admits that -such a notion was adopted by missionaries and others who had resided -long in the country. It is certain that the inhabitants glory in this -colour, and regard Europeans who have it not as nondescript beings, not -fully entitled to the name of men. It may be noticed also, that this -tint is by no means so universal as is commonly supposed. Humboldt -declares that the idea of its general prevalence could never have arisen -in equinoctial America, or been suggested by the view of the natives in -that region; yet these provinces include by far the larger part of the -aboriginal population. The people of Nootka sound and other districts of -the north-western coast are nearly as white as Europeans; which may be -ascribed, we think, to their ample clothing and spacious habitations. -Thus the red nations appear limited to the eastern tribes of North -America, among whom generally prevails the custom of painting or smearing -the skin with that favourite colour. We are not prepared to express a -decided opinion on this subject; but it obviously requires a closer -investigation than it has yet received. - -The hair is another particular in which the races of mankind remarkably -differ. The ruder classes are generally defective, either in the -abundance or quality of that graceful appendage; and the hair of the -American Indians, like that of their allied type the Mongols, is coarse, -black, thin, but strong, and growing to a great length. Like the latter, -also, by a curious coincidence, most of them remove it from every part -of the head, with the exception of a tuft on the crown, which they -cherish with much care. The circumstance, however, which has excited the -greatest attention, is the absence of beard, apparently entire, among -all the people of the New World. The early travellers viewed it as a -natural deficiency; whence Robertson and other eminent writers have even -inferred the existence of something peculiarly feeble in their whole -frame. But the assertion, with all the inferences founded upon it, so -far as relates to the North American tribes, has been completely refuted -by recent observation. The original growth has been found nearly, if not -wholly, as ample as that of Europeans; but the moment it appears, every -trace is studiously obliterated. This is effected by the aged females, -originally with a species of clam-shell, but now by means of spiral -pieces of brass-wire supplied by the traders. With these an old squaw -will in a few minutes reduce the chin to a state of complete smoothness; -and slight applications during the year clear away such straggling hairs -as may happen to sprout. It is only among old men, who become careless of -their appearance, that the beard begins to be perceptible. A late English -traveller strongly recommends to his countrymen a practice which, though -scarcely accordant with our ideas of manly dignity, would, at the expense -of a few minutes’ pain, save them much daily trouble. The Indians have -probably adopted this usage, as it removes an obstacle to the fantastic -painting of the face, which they value so highly. A full beard, at all -events, when it was first seen on their French visiters, is said to have -been viewed with peculiar antipathy, and to have greatly enhanced the -pleasure with which they killed these foreigners. - -The comparative physical strength of savage and civilized nations has -been a subject of controversy. A general impression has obtained that -the former, inured to simple and active habits, acquire a decided -superiority; but experience appears to have proved that this conclusion -is ill founded. On the field of battle, when a struggle takes place -between man and man, the Indian is usually worsted. In sportive -exercises, such as wrestling, he is most frequently thrown, and in -leaping comes short of his antagonist. Even in walking or running, if -for a short distance, he is left behind; but in these last movements he -possesses a power of perseverance and continued exertion to which there -is scarcely any parallel. An individual has been known to travel nearly -eighty miles in a day, and arrive at his destination without any symptoms -of fatigue. These long journeys, also, are frequently performed without -any refreshment, and even having the shoulders loaded with heavy burdens, -their capacity of supporting which is truly wonderful. For about twelve -miles, indeed, a strong European will keep ahead of the Indian; but then -he begins to flag, while the other, proceeding with unaltered pace, -outstrips him considerably. Even powerful animals cannot equal them in -this respect. Many of their civilized adversaries, when overcome in war, -and fleeing before them on swift horses, have, after a long chase, been -overtaken and scalped. - - - - -DRESS OF THE INDIANS. - - -Having thus given a view of the persons of the Indians, we may proceed -to consider the manner in which they are clothed and ornamented. This -last object might have been expected to be a very secondary one, among -tribes whose means of subsistence are so scanty and precarious; but, so -far is this from being the case, that there is scarcely any pursuit which -occupies so much of their time and regard. They have availed themselves -of European intercourse to procure each a small mirror, in which, from -time to time, they view their personal decorations, taking care that -everything shall be in the most perfect order. Embellishment, however, -is not much expended on actual clothing, which is simple, and chiefly -arranged with a view to convenience. Instead of shoes, they wear what are -termed moccasins, consisting of one strip of soft leather wrapped round -the foot, and fastened in front and behind. Europeans, walking over hard -roads, soon knock these to pieces; but the Indian, tripping over snow -or grass, finds them a light and agreeable _chaussure_. Upward to the -middle of the thigh, a piece of leather or cloth, tightly fitted to the -limb, serves instead of pantaloons, stockings, and boots; it is sometimes -sewed on so close as never to be taken off. To a string or girdle round -the waist are fastened two aprons, one before and the other at the back, -each somewhat more than a foot square and these are connected by a piece -of cloth like a truss, often used also as a capacious pocket. The use -of breeches they have always repelled with contempt, as cumbrous and -effeminate. As an article of female dress, they would consider them less -objectionable; but that the limbs of a warrior should be thus manacled, -appears to them utterly preposterous. They were particularly scandalized -at seeing an officer have them fastened over the shoulder by braces, and -never after gave him any name but Tied-Breech. - -The garments now enumerated form the whole of their permanent dress. On -occasions of ceremony, indeed, or when exposed to cold, they put over -it a short shirt fastened at the neck and wrists, and above it a long -loose robe, closed or held together in front. For this purpose they now -generally prefer an English blanket. All these articles were originally -fabricated from the skins of wild animals; but at present, unless for -the moccasins, and sometimes the leggins, European stuffs are preferred. -The dress of the female scarcely differs from that of the male, except -that the apron reaches down to the knees; and even this is said to have -been adopted since their acquaintance with civilized nations. The early -French writers relate an amusing anecdote to prove how little dress was -considered as making a distinction between the sexes. The Ursuline nuns, -having educated a Huron girl, presented her, on her marriage to one -of her countrymen, with a complete and handsome suit of clothes in the -Parisian style. They were much surprised, some days after, to see the -husband, who had ungenerously seized the whole of his bride’s attire and -arrayed himself in it, parading back and forward in front of the convent, -and betraying every symptom of the most extravagant exultation. This was -farther heightened when he observed the ladies crowding to the window to -see him, and a universal smile spread over their countenances. - -These vestments, as already observed, are simple, and adapted only for -use. To gratify his passionate love of ornament, the Indian seeks chiefly -to load his person with certain glittering appendages. Before the arrival -of Europeans, shells and feathers took the lead; but, since that period, -these commodities have been nearly supplanted by beads, rings, bracelets, -and similar toys, which are inserted profusely into various parts of -his apparel, particularly the little apron in front. The chiefs usually -wear a breastplate ornamented with them; and among all classes it is -an object of the greatest ambition to have the largest possible number -suspended from the ear. That organ, therefore, is not bored, but slit to -such an extent that a stick of wax may be passed through the aperture, -which is then loaded with all the baubles that can be mustered; and if -the weight of these gradually draw down the yielding flap till it rest on -the shoulder, and the ornaments themselves cover the breast, the Indian -has reached his utmost height of finery. This, however, is a precarious -splendour; the ear becomes more and more unfit to support the burden, -when at length some accident, the branch of a tree, or even a twitch by a -waggish comrade, lays at his feet all his decorations, with the portion -of flesh to which they were attached. Weld saw very few who had preserved -this organ entire through life. The adjustment of the hair, again, is -an object of especial study. As already observed, the greater part is -generally eradicated, leaving only a tuft, varying in shape and place, -according to taste and national custom, but usually encircling the crown. -This lock is stuck full of feathers, wings of birds, shells, and every -kind of fantastic ornament. The women wear theirs long and flowing, and -contrive to collect a considerable number of ornaments for it, as well as -for their ears and dress. - -But it is upon his skin that the American warrior chiefly lavishes his -powers of embellishment. His taste in doing so is very different from -ours. “While the European,” says Creuxius, “studies to keep his skin -clean, and free from every extraneous substance, the Indian’s aim is, -that his, by the accumulation of oil, grease, and paint, may shine like -that of a roasted pig.” Soot scraped from the bottoms of kettles, the -juices of herbs, having a green, yellow, and, above all, a vermilion -tint, rendered adhesive by combination with oil and grease, are lavishly -employed to adorn his person, or, according to our idea, to render it -hideous. Black and red, alternating with each other in varied stripes, -are the favourite tints. Some blacken the face, leaving in the middle -a red circle, including the upper lip and tip of the nose; others -have a red spot on each ear, or one eye black and the other of a red -colour. In war the black tint is profusely laid on, the others being -only employed to heighten its effect, and give to the countenance a -terrific expression. M. de Tracy, when governor of Canada, was told by -his Indian allies, that, with his good-humoured face, he would never -inspire the enemy with any degree of awe. They besought him to place -himself under their brush, when they would soon make him such that his -very aspect would strike terror. The breast, arms, and legs are the seat -of more permanent impressions, analogous to the tattooing of the South -Sea Islanders. The colours are either elaborately rubbed in, or fixed -by slight incisions with needles and sharp-pointed bones. His guardian -spirit, and the animal that forms the symbol of his tribe, are the first -objects delineated. After this, every memorable exploit, and particularly -the enemies whom he has slain and scalped, are diligently graven on some -part of his figure; so that the body of an aged warrior contains the -history of his life. - - - - -INDIAN HUNTING. - - -It is a mistake to suppose that hunting is pursued by the Indian merely -as a means of subsistence. It is also his favourite sport; and no English -gentleman who spends his thousands of pounds per annum on his horses and -hounds, follows the sports of the field with a keener zest, than the -wild Indian who has never beheld the face of a white man. The accounts -of Catlin, who spent much time among the wildest tribes, show, that -amusement, in its most liberal sense, is pursued by the Indians in this -way. Hunting is not drudgery to them. - -The means of procuring subsistence must always form an important branch -of national economy. Writers take a superficial view of savage life, -and, seeing how scanty the articles of food are, while the demand is -necessarily urgent, have assumed that the efforts to attain them must -absorb his whole mind, and scarcely leave room for any other thought. -But, on the contrary, these are to him very subordinate objects. To -perform a round of daily labour, even though ensuring the most ample -provision for his wants, would be equally contrary to his inclination -and supposed dignity. He will not deign to follow any pursuit which does -not, at the same time, include enterprise, adventure, and excitement. -Hunting, which the higher classes in the civilized parts of the world -pursue for mere recreation, is almost the only occupation considered of -sufficient importance to engage his attention. It is peculiarly endeared -by its resemblance to war, being carried on with the same weapons, -and nearly in the same manner. In his native state, the arrow was the -favourite and almost exclusive instrument for assailing distant objects; -but now the gun has nearly superseded it. The great hunts are rendered -more animating, as well as more effectual, from being carried on in large -parties, and even by whole tribes. The men are prepared for these by -fasting, dreaming, and other superstitious observances, similar to those -which we shall find employed in anticipation of war. In such expeditions, -too, contrivance and skill, as well as boldness and enterprise, are -largely employed. Sometimes a circle is formed, when all the animals -surrounded by it are pressed closer and closer, till they are collected -in the centre, and fall under the accumulated weight of weapons. On other -occasions they are driven to the margin of a lake or river, in which, -if they attempt to seek refuge, canoes are ready to intercept them. -Elsewhere a space is enclosed by stakes, only a narrow opening being -left, which, by clamour and shouts, the game are compelled to enter, and -thereby secured. In autumn and spring, when the ice is newly formed and -slight, they are pushed upon it, and their legs breaking through, they -are easily caught. In winter, when the snow begins to fall, traps are -set, in which planks are so arranged, that the animal, in snatching at -the bait, is crushed to death. Originally the deer, both for food and -clothing, was the most valuable object of chase; but, since the trade -with Europeans has given such a prominent importance to furs, the beaver -has in some degree supplanted it. In attacking this animal, great care -is taken to prevent his escape into the water, on which his habitation -always borders; and with this view various kinds of nets and springes -are employed. On some occasions the Indians place themselves upon the -dike which encloses his amphibious village. They then make an opening in -it, when the inmates, alarmed by seeing the water flowing out, hasten -to this barrier, where they encounter their enemies, armed with all the -instruments of destruction. At other times, when ice covers the surface -of the pond, a hole is made, at which the animal comes to respire; he is -then drawn out and secured. The bear is a formidable enemy, which must -be assailed by the combined force of the hunters, who are ranged in two -rows, armed with bows or muskets. One of them advances and wounds him, -and, on being furiously pursued, he retreats between the files, followed -in the same line by the animal, which is then overwhelmed by their -united onset. In killing these quadrupeds, the natives seem to feel a -sort of kindness and sympathy for their victim. On vanquishing a beaver -or a bear, they celebrate its praises in a song, recounting those good -qualities which it will never more be able to display, yet consoling -themselves with the useful purposes to which its flesh and its skin will -be applied. - -Of the animals usually tamed and rendered subservient to useful purposes, -the Indians have only the dog, that faithful friend of man. Though -his services in hunting are valuable, he is treated with but little -tenderness, and is left to roam about the dwelling, very sparingly -supplied with food and shelter. A missionary, who resided in a Huron -village, represents his life as having been rendered miserable by these -animals. At night they laid themselves on his person for the benefit of -the warmth; and, whenever his scanty meal was set down, their snouts were -always first in the dish. Dog’s flesh is eaten, and has even a peculiar -sanctity attached to it. On all solemn festivals it is the principal -meat, the use of which, on such occasions, seems to import some high and -mysterious meaning. - -But, besides the cheering avocations of the chase, other means must be -used to ensure the comfort and subsistence of the Indian’s family; all -of which, however, are most ungenerously devolved upon the weaker sex. -Women, according to Creuxius, serve them as domestics, as tailors, as -peasants, and as oxen; and Long does not conceive that any other purposes -of their existence are recognized, except those of bearing children -and performing hard work. They till the ground, carry wood and water, -build huts, make canoes, and fish; in which latter processes, however, -and in reaping the harvest, their lords deign to give occasional aid. -So habituated are they to such occupations, that when one of them saw a -party of English soldiers collecting wood, she exclaimed that it was a -shame to see men doing women’s work, and began herself to carry a load. - -Through the services of this enslaved portion of the tribe, those savages -are enabled to combine in a certain degree the agricultural with the -hunting state, without any mixture of the pastoral, usually considered -as intermediate. Cultivation, however, is limited to small spots in -the immediate vicinity of the villages, and these being usually at the -distance of sixteen or seventeen miles from each other, it scarcely -makes any impression on the immense expanse of forest. The women, in the -beginning of summer, after having burned the stubble of the preceding -crop, rudely stir the ground with a long, crooked piece of wood; they -then throw in the grain, which is chiefly the coarse but productive -species of maize peculiar to the Continent. The nations in the south -have a considerable variety of fruits; whereas those of Canada appear -to have raised only turnsols, watermelons, and pompions. Tobacco used -to be grown largely; but that produced by the European settlers is now -universally preferred, and has become a regular object of trade. The -grain, after harvest (which is celebrated by a festival), is lodged in -large subterraneous stores lined with bark, where it keeps extremely -well. Previous to being placed in these, it is sometimes thrashed; on -other occasions merely the ears are cut off, and thrown in. When first -discovered by settlers from Europe, the degrees of culture were found -to vary in different tribes. The Algonquins, who were the ruling people -previous to the arrival of the French, wholly despised it, and branded -as plebeian their neighbours, by whom it was practised. In general, the -northern clans, and those near the mouth of the St. Lawrence, depended -almost solely on hunting and fishing; and when these failed they were -reduced to dreadful extremities, being often obliged to depend on the -miserable resource of that species of lichen called _tripe de roche_. - -The maize, when thrashed, is occasionally toasted on the coals, and -sometimes made into a coarse kind of unleavened cake. But the most -favourite preparation is that called _sagamity_, a species of pap formed -after it has been roasted, bruised, and separated from the husk. It is -insipid by itself; yet when thrown into the pot, along with the produce -of the chase, it enriches the soup or stew, one of the principal dishes -at their feasts. They never eat victuals raw, but rather overboiled; nor -have they yet been brought to endure French ragouts, salt, pepper, or, -indeed, any species of condiment. A chief, admitted to the governor’s -table, seeing the general use of mustard, was led by curiosity to take -a spoonful and put it into his mouth. On feeling its violent effects, he -made incredible efforts to conceal them, and escape the ridicule of the -company; but severe sneezings, and the tears starting from his eyes, soon -betrayed him, and raised a general laugh. He was then shown the manner in -which it should be used; but nothing could ever induce him to allow the -“boiling yellow,” as he termed it, to enter his lips. - -The Indians are capable of extraordinary abstinence from food, in which -they can persevere for successive days without complaint or apparent -suffering. They even take a pride in long fasts, by which they usually -prepare themselves for any great undertaking. Yet, when once set down to -a feast, their gluttony is described as enormous, and the capacity of -their stomachs almost incredible. They will go from feast to feast, doing -honour to each in succession. The chief giving the entertainment does not -partake, but with his own hands distributes portions among the guests. -On solemn occasions, it is a rule that everything shall be eaten; nor -does this obligation seem to be felt as either burdensome or unpleasant. -In their native state, they were not acquainted with any species of -intoxicating liquors; their love of ardent spirits, attended with so many -ruinous effects, having been entirely consequent on their intercourse -with Europeans. - - - - -HABITATIONS OF THE INDIANS. - - -There is great diversity among the various tribes of North American -Indians in respect to manners and customs, dress, and modes of living. -The inhabitants of the sultry regions of Florida and Texas, of course -pay less attention to the texture of their garments, and the comfort of -their dwellings, than those who reside in the more northern regions; and -other diversities of habit are produced by differences of climate and -situation. Still there is a certain degree of simplicity inherent in -savage life which pervades all the tribes:—it is the simplicity which is -the necessary consequence of poverty and ignorance. - -The habitations of the Indians receive much less of their attention -than the attire, or, at least, embellishment of their persons. Our -countrymen, by common consent, give to them no better appellation than -cabins. The bark of trees is their chief material both for houses and -boats: they peel it off with considerable skill, sometimes stripping a -whole tree in one piece. This coating, spread not unskilfully over a -framework of poles, and fastened to them by strips of tough rind, forms -their dwellings. The shape, according to the owner’s fancy, resembles a -tub, a cone, or a cart-shed, the mixture of which gives to the village -a confused and chaotic appearance. Light and heat are admitted only -by an aperture at the top, through which also the smoke escapes, after -filling all the upper part of the mansion. Little inconvenience is felt -from this by the natives, who, within doors, never think of any position -except sitting or lying; but to Europeans, who must occasionally stand -or walk, the abode is thereby rendered almost intolerable; and matters -become much worse when rain or snow makes it necessary to close the roof. -These structures are sometimes upward of a hundred feet long; but they -are then the residence of two or three separate families. Four of them -occasionally compose a quadrangle, each open on the inside, and having -a common fire in the centre. Formerly the Iroquois had houses somewhat -superior, adorned even with some rude carving; but these were burned down -by the French in successive expeditions, and were never after rebuilt in -the same style. The Canadians in this respect seem to be surpassed by -the Choctaws, Chickasaws, and other tribes in the south, and even by the -Saukies in the west, whose mansions Carver describes as constructed of -well-hewn planks, neatly jointed, and each capable of containing several -families. - -In their expeditions, whether for war or hunting, which often lead them -through desolate forests, several hundred miles from home, the Indians -have the art of rearing, with great expedition, temporary abodes. On -arriving at their evening station, a few poles, meeting at the top in -the form of a cone, are in half an hour covered with bark; and having -spread a few pine-branches within by way of mattress, they sleep as -soundly as on beds of down. Like the Esquimaux, they also understand how -to convert snow into a material for building; and find it in the depth -of winter the warmest and most comfortable. A few twigs platted together -secure the roof. Our own countrymen, in their several campaigns, have, in -cases of necessity, used with advantage this species of bivouac. - -The furniture in these native huts is exceedingly simple. The chief -articles are two or three pots or kettles for boiling their food, with a -few wooden plates and spoons. The former, in the absence of metal, with -which the inhabitants were unacquainted, were made of coarse earthenware -that resisted the fire; and sometimes of a species of soft stone, which -could be excavated with their rude hatchets. Nay, in some cases, their -kitchen utensils were of wood, and the water made to boil by throwing in -heated stones. Since their acquaintance with Europeans, the superiority -of iron vessels has been found so decided, that they are now universally -preferred. The great kettle or caldron, employed only on high festivals -associated with religion, hunting, or war, attracts even a kind of -veneration; and potent chiefs have assumed its name as their title of -honour. - - - - -INTELLECTUAL CHARACTER OF THE INDIANS - - -The intellectual character of the American savage presents some very -striking peculiarities. Considering his unfavourable condition, he of -all other human beings might seem doomed to make the nearest approach -to the brute; while, in point of fact, without any aid from letters -or study, many of the higher faculties of his mind are developed in -a very remarkable degree. He displays a decided superiority over the -uninstructed labourer in a civilized community, whose mental energies -are benumbed amid the daily round of mechanical occupation. The former -spends a great part of his life in arduous enterprises, where much -contrivance is requisite, and whence he must often extricate himself -by presence of mind and ingenuity. His senses, particularly those of -seeing and smelling, have acquired by practice an almost preternatural -acuteness. He can trace an animal or a foe by indications which to a -European eye would be wholly imperceptible; and in his wanderings he -gathers a minute acquaintance with the geography of the countries which -he traverses. He can even draw a rude outline of them by applying a -mixture of charcoal and grease to prepared skins, and on seeing a regular -map he soon understands its construction, and readily finds out places. -His facility in discovering the most direct way to spots situated at the -distance of hundreds of miles, and known perhaps only by the report of -his countrymen, is truly astonishing. It has been ascribed by some to a -mysterious and supernatural instinct, but it appears to be achieved by -merely observing the different aspect of the trees or shrubs when exposed -to the north or the south, as also the position of the sun, which he can -point out, although hidden by clouds. Even where there is a beaten track, -if at all circuitous, he strikes directly through the woods, and reaches -his destination by the straightest possible line. - -Other faculties of a higher order are developed by the scenes amid which -the life of savages is spent. They are divided into a number of little -communities, between which are actively carried on all the relations -of war, negotiation, treaty, and alliance. As mighty revolutions, -observes an eloquent writer, take place in these kingdoms of wood and -cities of bark, as in the most powerful civilized states. To increase -the influence and extend the possessions of their own tribe, to humble -and, if possible, to destroy those hostile to them, are the constant -aims of every member of those little commonwealths. For these ends, not -only deeds of daring valour are achieved, but schemes are deeply laid, -and pursued with the most accurate calculation. There is scarcely a -refinement in European diplomacy to which they are strangers. The French -once made an attempt to crush the confederacy of the Five Nations by -attacking each in succession; but as they were on their march against -the first tribe, they were met by the deputies of the others, who -offered their mediation, intimating that, if it were rejected, they -would make common cause with the one threatened. That association also -showed that they completely understood how to employ the hostility -which prevailed between their enemy and the English for promoting their -own aggrandizement. Embassies, announced by the calumet of peace, are -constantly passing from one tribe to another. - -The same political circumstances develop in an extraordinary degree the -powers of oratory; for nothing of any importance is transacted without -a speech. On every emergency a council of the tribe is called, when the -aged and wise hold long deliberations for the public weal. The best -speakers are despatched to conduct their negotiations, the object of -which is unfolded in studied harangues. The functions of orator, among -the Five Nations, had even become a separate profession, held in equal -or higher honour than that of the warrior; and each clan appointed the -most eloquent of their number to speak for them in the public council. -Nay, there was a general orator for the whole confederacy, who could say -to the French governor, “Ononthio, lend thine ear; I am the mouth of all -the country; you hear all the Iroquois in hearing my word.” Decanesora, -their speaker at a later period, was greatly admired by the English, and -his bust was thought to resemble that of Cicero. In their diplomatic -discourses, each proposition is prefaced by the delivery of a belt of -wampum, of which what follows is understood to be the explanation, and -which is to be preserved as a record of the conference. The orator does -not express his proposals in words only, but gives to every sentence -its appropriate action. If he threatens war, he wildly brandishes the -tomahawk; if he solicits alliance, he twines his arms closely with those -of the chief whom he addresses; and if he invites friendly intercourse, -he assumes all the attitudes of one who is forming a road in the Indian -manner, by cutting down the trees, clearing them away, and carefully -removing the leaves and branches. To a French writer, who witnessed the -delivery of a solemn embassy, it suggested the idea of a company of -actors performing on a stage. So expressive are their gestures, that -negotiations have been conducted and alliances concluded between petty -states and communities who understood nothing of one another’s language. - -The composition of the Indian orators is studied and elaborate. The -language of the Iroquois is even held to be susceptible of an Attic -elegance, which few can attain so fully as to escape all criticism. It -is figurative in the highest degree, every notion being expressed by -images addressed to the senses. Thus, to throw up the hatchet or to put -on the great caldron is to begin a war; to throw the hatchet to the sky -is to wage open and terrible war; to take off the caldron or to bury -the hatchet is to make peace; to plant the tree of peace on the highest -mountain of the earth is to make a general pacification. To throw a -prisoner into the caldron is to devote him to torture and death; to take -him out, is to pardon and receive him as a member of the community. -Ambassadors coming to propose a full and general treaty say, “We rend -the clouds asunder, and drive away all darkness from the heavens, that -the sun of peace may shine with brightness over us all.” On another -occasion, referring to their own violent conduct, they said, “We are -glad that Assarigoa will bury in the pit what is past; let the earth -be trodden hard over it, or, rather, let a strong stream run under the -pit to wash away the evil.” They afterward added, “We now plant a tree, -whose top will reach the sun, and its branches spread far abroad, and we -shall shelter ourselves under it, and live in peace.” To send the collar -under ground is to carry on a secret negotiation; but when expressing a -desire that there might be no duplicity or concealment between them and -the French, they said that “They wished to fix the sun in the top of the -heaven, immediately above that pole, that it might beat directly down -and leave nothing in obscurity.” In pledging themselves to a firm and -steady peace, they declared that they would not only throw down the great -war-caldron, and cause all the water to flow out, but would break it in -pieces. This disposition to represent every thing by a sensible object -extends to matters the most important. One powerful people assumed the -appellation of Foxes, while another gloried in that of Cats. Even when -the entire nation bore a different appellation, separate fraternities -distinguished themselves as the tribe of the Bear, the Tortoise, and the -Wolf. They did not disdain a reference even to inanimate things. The -Black Caldron was at one time the chief warrior of the Five Nations; and -Red Shoes was a person of distinction well known to Long the traveller. -When the chiefs concluded treaties with Europeans, their signature -consisted in a picture, often tolerably well executed, of the beast or -object after which they chose to be named. - -The absence among these tribes of any written or even pictorial mode -of recording events, was supplied by the memories of their old men, -which were so retentive, that a certain writer calls them living books. -Their only remembrancer consisted in the wampum belts; of which one was -appropriated to each division of a speech or treaty, and had seemingly -a powerful effect in calling it to recollection. On the close of the -transaction, these were deposited as public documents, to be drawn forth -on great occasions, when the orators, and even the old women, could -repeat verbatim the passage to which each referred. Europeans were thus -enabled to collect information concerning the revolutions of different -tribes, for several ages preceding their own arrival. - - - - -SINGULAR EXECUTION OF AN INDIAN. - - -In March, 1823, a Choctaw savage, calling himself Doctor Sibley, -belonging to a wandering tribe of his nation, in the Arkansas -Territory,—while in a state of intoxication, stabbed to the heart another -Indian; who instantly expired. This act called for revenge, founded on -the _lex taliones_—that invariable custom of the aborigines. A brother -of the deceased called upon Sibley, and told him, that he was come to -take his life, in atonement for the death of his brother. With the -composure of a philosopher, and the courage of a Roman, Sibley—readily, -and without a murmur—yielded assent; only desiring the execution might be -postponed until the following morning. This was granted;—the execution -was postponed—and Sibley _left at large, under no restraint whatever_! - -When the morning came, Sibley went out with the rest of the party, and, -with perfect apathy, aided in digging a grave for the murdered Indian. -The work being finished, he calmly observed to the by-standers, that, he -thought it large enough to contain two bodies;—signifying, at the same -time, a wish to be buried in the same grave. This, too, was granted: and -the murderer deliberately took a standing position over the grave, with -outstretched arms; and, giving a signal to fire, the brother drove a -rifle ball through his heart—and he dropt into the hole he had assisted -to make! - - - - -INDIAN VERACITY. - - -“_He once told a lie_”—was the emphatical expression of an Indian to me, -in 1794, when I was attending to the surveying of a large body of lands -in, what was then called, ‘The French-Creek Country,’ and West of the -Alleghany River: and, as some of my people were killed by the Western -Indians, I found it necessary, while the surveying was going on, to visit -the Indian Towns on the Alleghany River frequently:—they were inhabited -by the Senecas. General Wayne was then on his way, with his army, to the -Indian settlements on the Miami River. - -One day, when I was at the Cornplanter’s town, the ‘_News-Spout_,’ as it -is called, was heard. All the Indians in the village immediately retired -to their houses (and even their dogs went with them;) when an old man -went out to meet the person who brought the news, and to take him to -the Long, or Council-House, where a fire was made and refreshments were -carried to him, and time given for him to dress and paint himself, so as -to appear decent. - -When sufficient time had elapsed for the preparatives to be performed, -the chiefs went first to the house; and, as the young men were following, -I asked an Indian—who spoke English, and to whom (as he professed to be a -priest, physician, and conjurer) I gave the name of Doctor—whether there -was any impropriety in my going to hear the news. He said, “No”—and -that, as I was received as a friend and visiter, all their houses were -open to me: and if I did not go without any ceremony, it would appear as -if _I doubted their words and hospitality_; which was considered as the -greatest affront that could be put on an Indian. For that, if there was -any secret business going on they would inform me of it, in a friendly -way and then I might retire. - -I accordingly went into the house with him; when the Chiefs immediately -rose, and gave me a seat among them. - -All the Indians in the house were smoking their pipes when I came in; -and the stranger was sitting opposite the Chiefs, in a seat, or rather -a platform, by himself. The time appeared to me very long, as I was -anxious to hear the news; being much interested in the event, as the -Indians had been deliberating, whether or not they would permit me to -continue surveying, or send me out of the country: and, what surprised -me, was, that no one—contrary to their usual custom—asked him for the -news; and I was at a loss to account for their conduct. Eventually, -the Indian himself—after prefacing the business, with telling them, -he had no doubt,—as they knew he had been to the West—they would be -gratified in hearing his news. But no one appeared to signify his assent -or negative. The Indian then gave an account of an affair between a -convoy of Americans—who were carrying reinforcements and provisions -to one of our frontier posts—and the Indians; and they had killed the -commanding officer and a number of our men: and, after he had related all -he had to say, no one asked for any particulars of the action, or for -any corroborating circumstance; as I had formerly observed, they were -particularly polite to strangers and visiters, and were very cautious to -say or do any thing to hurt their feelings, and, soon after, the chiefs -and other Indians began to leave the house. - -I left the house with the Doctor; and, as soon as we had passed the -door, I expressed my surprise to him, at the manner they treated the man -who brought the news, as it was so different from any treatment I had -before seen, when visited by strangers; and that I would thank him to -inform me of the cause of it:—when he, without any hesitation, and with -considerable emphasis, answered, “HE ONCE TOLD A LIE”—and continued: -“What that man said, may be so true; may be so not. We always listen -to what a newsman has to say,—even when we know him to be a liar. But, -whether we believe him or not, it is not our custom to let him know; or -to say any thing on the subject: for, if we had asked him any questions -about the fight, it would have been a great gratification to him; as he -would have concluded some of the company did believe him: which is a -thing we do not indulge any person in, who has been guilty of telling a -lie.” He concluded, by saying, “_He all one as dead._” - - - - -PETER OTSAQUETTE, THE ONEIDAN - - -Peter Otsaquette was the son of a man of consideration among the Oneida -Indians of New York. At the close of the Revolutionary war, he was -noticed by the Marquis de La Fayette, who, to a noble zeal for liberty, -united the most philanthropic feelings. Viewing, therefore, this young -savage with peculiar interest, and anticipating the happy results to be -derived from his moral regeneration, he took him, though scarcely twelve -years old, to France. Peter arrived at that period when Louis XVI. and -Maria Antoinette were in the zenith of their glory. There he was taught -the accomplishments of a gentleman;—music, drawing, and fencing, were -made familiar to him, and he danced with a grace that a Vestris could not -but admire. At about eighteen, his separation from a country in which -he had spent his time so agreeably and so profitably, became necessary. -Laden with favours from the Marquis, and the miniatures of those friends -he had left behind. Peter departed for America—inflated, perhaps, with -the idea, that the deep ignorance of his nation, with that of the Indians -of the whole continent, might be dispelled by his efforts, and he become -the proud instrument of the civilization of thousands. - -Prosecuting his route to the land of his parents, he came to the city -of Albany; not the uncivilized savage, not with any of those marks -which bespoke a birth in the forest, or years spent in toiling the wilds -of a desert, but possessing a fine commanding figure, an expressive -countenance, an intelligent eye, with a face scarcely indicative of -the race from which he was descended. He presented, at this period, an -interesting spectacle: a child of the wilderness was beheld about to -proceed to the home of his forefathers, having received the brilliant -advantages of a cultivated mind, and on his way to impart to the nation -that owned him, the benefits which civilization had given him. It was an -opportunity for the philosopher to contemplate, and to reflect on the -future good this young Indian might be the means of producing. - -Shortly after his arrival in Albany—where he visited the first -families—he took advantage of Governor Clinton’s journey to Fort Stanwix -(where a treaty was to be held with the Indians,) to return to his tribe. -On the route, Otsaquette amused the company (among whom were the French -Minister, Count De Moustiers, and several gentlemen of respectability) -by his powers on various instruments of music. At Fort Stanwix, he -found himself again with the companions of his early days, who saw and -recognised him. His friends and relations had not forgotten him, and he -was welcomed to his home and to his blanket. - -But that which occurred soon after his reception, led him to a too -fearful anticipation of an unsuccessful project; for the Oneidas, as if -they could not acknowledge Otsaquette, attired in the dress with which -he appeared before them,—a mark which did not disclose his nation,—and, -thinking that he had assumed it, as if ashamed of his own native costume, -the garb of his ancestors, they tore it from him with a savage avidity, -and a fiend-like ferociousness, daubed on the paint to which he had -been so long unused, and clothed him with the uncouth habiliments held -sacred by his tribe. Their fiery ferocity, in the performance of the act, -showed but too well the bold stand they were about to take against the -innovations they supposed Otsaquette was to be the agent for affecting -against their immemorial manners and customs, and which, from the -venerable antiquity of their structure, it would be nothing short of -sacrilege to destroy. - -Thus the reformed savage was taken back again to his native barbarity, -and—as if to cap the climax of degradation to a mind just susceptible of -its own powers—was _married to a squaw_! - -From that day, Otsaquette was no longer the accomplished Indian, from -whom every wish of philanthropy was expected to be realized. He was no -longer the instrument by whose power the emancipation of his countrymen -from the thraldom of ignorance and superstition, was to be effected. From -that day, he was again an inmate with the forest; was once more buried -in his original obscurity, and his nation only viewed him as _an equal_. -Even a liberal grant from the State, failed of securing to him that -superior consideration among them which his civilization had procured -for him with the rest of mankind. The commanding preeminence acquired -from instruction, from which it was expected ambition would have sprung -up, and acted as a double stimulant, from either the natural inferiority -of the savage mind, or the predetermination of his countrymen—became of -no effect, and, in a little time, was wholly annihilated. Otsaquette -was lost! His moral perdition began from the hour he left Fort Stanwix. -Three short months had hardly transpired, when Intemperance had marked -him as her own, and soon hurried him to the grave. And, as if the very -transition had deadened all the finer feelings of his nature, the picture -given him by the Marquis—the very portrait of his affectionate friend and -benefactor himself—he parted with! - -Extraordinary and unnatural as the conduct of this educated savage may -appear, the anecdote is not of a kind altogether unique; which proves, -that little or nothing is to be expected from conferring a literary -education upon those children of the forest:—An Indian, named George -White-Eyes, was taken, while a boy, to the college at Princeton, where he -received a classical education. On returning to his nation, he made some -little stay in Philadelphia. He was amiable in his manners, and of modest -demeanour, without exhibiting any trait of the savage whatever; but, no -sooner had he rejoined his friends and former companions, in the land -of his nativity, than he dropped the garb and manners of civilization, -and resumed those of the savage, and, drinking deep of their intoxicating -cup, soon put a period to his existence. - -Many other instances might be adduced, to show how ineffectual have -been the attempts to plant civilization on savage habits, by means of -_literary_ education—“Can the leopard change his spots?” - -[Illustration] - - - - -THE CATASTROPHE. - - -The son of a Kickapoo Chief, being engaged to a Ouiattanon girl, came in -quest of her to fort Knox, at Vincennes—though an Indian war was then -waging against the United States; and, in this, the Kickapoos were among -the most formidable. We happened to be there at this time. It was summer, -and the weather very warm. The young Kickapoo was admitted into the -fort, and, among other presents, threw down several joints of venison; -observing to the commanding officer, that, if he could not eat them -himself, (for they were tainted,) they might answer for his _hogs_ and -_dogs_—muttering at the same time, and making the sign of a halter round -his neck, that perhaps they might hang him for appearing among them; -alluding, no doubt, to the then Indian war. - -On the evening of the same day the young Kickapoo got into a drunken -frolic, with other savages, among whom was the before mentioned Indian. -The latter said to the Kickapoo, “May be I shall kill you:” and, without -further preface, he plunged a knife into him—which instantly proved -fatal. At this moment the Ouiattanons in company took the alarm—fearful -of the consequences that might befall their tribe, from the death of the -son of a powerful chieftain. It was therefore determined to propitiate -the Kickapoo’s father, by sending a deputation to him with the present of -a ten gallon keg of whisky as a peace offering. This was furnished for -the purpose, on request, by the commanding officer of the fort. They had -not gone far when the precious liquor proved too great a temptation: the -keg was broached, and soon emptied. What then was to be done? - -Next morning, however, they appeared again at the fort—deplored the -‘_accident_,’ (as they called it,) and begged for another keg of liquor. -This too was granted—and off they went again. But this keg met with the -fate of the former: its contents proved an irresistible temptation. As no -more whisky could now be obtained, the mission fell through. - -Upon this, the Indians appeared before the fort, with the murderer in -custody, under the window of the writer, and demanded justice to be done -on the prisoner. He told them it was an affair for themselves to settle, -as it was confined to themselves alone. They now marched in Indian file, -carrying off the murderer, who, every now and then, looked fearfully -behind him—for the brother of the deceased’s sweetheart had taken post -next in his rear. They had not proceeded far, when this brother plunged a -knife into the prisoner’s back, which broke, and a part was left buried -in the wound. The whole party now returned before the fort—the wounded -man singing his death-song. He was borne off by his friends into a -thicket, in the prairie, where all their efforts to extract the broken -blade proved ineffectual; and the next day or two he died. - -The Spider, a brother of the murderer, and then at Kaskaskia, hearing of -the predicament which had befallen the latter, hastened to Vincennes—but -death had closed the scene. He came in time, however, to attend the -funeral. When the body was about to be consigned to the earth, he opened -the blanket which enveloped the corpse, and taking off a silver ornament -which encompassed his head, he bound it around that of the defunct, -saying, “There, brother! this will bring you respect in the land of -Spirits.” - -[Illustration] - - - - -BUFFALO HUNTING. - - -The buffalo, more properly called the bison, is the great object of -Indian hunting in the west. These animals abound in the prairies; and -they are often seen coursing over the plains in immense herds. Thousands -of them appear under the direction of one of their number, who acts as -leader. This propensity to follow a leader affords a ready means to the -Indians of destroying them. The manner in which this is accomplished is -graphically described in the following extract from the account of a late -writer. It affords a wild picture of the scenes which present themselves -to the notice of the traveller as he passes through the great prairies of -the west. - -We passed a precipice of about one hundred and twenty feet high, under -which lay scattered the fragments of at least one hundred carcases of -buffaloes, although the water, which had washed away the lower part of -the hill, must have carried off many of the dead. These buffaloes had -been chased down the precipice, in a way very common on the Missouri, and -by which vast herds are destroyed in a moment. The mode of hunting is, to -select one of the most active and fleet young men, who is disguised, by a -buffalo skin around his body, the skin of the head, with the ears and the -horns, fastened on his own head, in such a way as to deceive the buffalo. -Thus dressed, he fixes himself at a convenient distance, between a herd -of buffaloes and any of the river precipices, which sometimes extend -for some miles. His companions, in the meantime, get into the rear, -and on the side of the herd, and, at a given signal, show themselves, -and advance towards the buffalo: they instantly take the alarm; and, -finding the hunters beside them, they run towards the disguised Indian or -decoy, who leads them on at full speed toward the river, when, suddenly -securing himself in some crevice of the cliff which he had previously -fixed on, the herd is left on the brink of the precipice. It is then in -vain for the foremost to retreat, or even to stop—they are pressed on -by the hindmost rank, who, seeing no danger, but from the hunters, goad -on those before them, till the whole are precipitated, and the shore is -strewed with their dead bodies. Sometimes, in this perilous seduction, -the Indian is himself either trodden under foot, by the rapid movements -of the buffaloes or missing his footing in the cliff, is urged down the -precipice along with the falling herd. - -The Indians now select as much meat as they choose, and the rest is -abandoned to the wolves, and creates a most dreadful stench. The wolves -who had been feasting on these carcases were very fat, and so gentle, -that one of them was killed with an espontoon. - - - - -RELIGION OF THE INDIANS. - - -The earliest visiters of the New World, on seeing among the Indians -neither priests, temples, idols, nor sacrifices, represented them as a -people wholly destitute of religious opinions. Closer inquiry, however, -showed that a belief in the spiritual world, however imperfect, had -a commanding influence over almost all their actions. Their creed -includes even some lofty and pure conceptions. Under the title of the -Great Spirit, the Master of Life, the Maker of heaven and earth, they -distinctly recognise a supreme ruler of the universe and an arbiter of -their destiny. A party of them, when informed by the missionaries of -the existence of a being of infinite power, who had created the heavens -and the earth, with one consent exclaimed, “_Atahocan! Atahocan!_” that -being the name of their principal deity. According to Long, the Indians -among whom he resided ascribe every event, propitious or unfortunate, to -the favour or anger of the Master of Life. They address him for their -daily subsistence; they believe him to convey to them presence of mind -in battle; and amid tortures they thank him for inspiring them with -courage. Yet though this one elevated and just conception is deeply -graven on their minds, it is combined with others which show all the -imperfection of unassisted reason in attempting to think rightly on this -great subject. It may even be observed, that the term, rendered into our -language “great spirit,” does not really convey the idea of an immaterial -nature, it imports with them merely some being possessed of lofty and -mysterious powers, and in this sense is applied to men, and even to -animals. The brute creation, which occupies a prominent place in all -their ideas, is often viewed by them as invested, to a great extent, with -supernatural powers; an extreme absurdity, which, however, they share -with the civilized creeds of Egypt and India. - -When the missionaries, on their first arrival, attempted to form an idea -of the Indian mythology, it appeared to them extremely complicated, -more especially because those who attempted to explain it had no fixed -opinions. Each man differed from his neighbour, and at another time from -himself; and when the discrepancies were pointed out, no attempt was made -to reconcile them. The southern tribes, who had a more settled faith, are -described by Adair as intoxicated with spiritual pride, and denouncing -even their European allies as “the accursed people.” The native Canadian, -on the contrary, is said to have been so little tenacious, that he would -at any time renounce all his theological errors for a pipe of tobacco, -though, as soon as it was smoked, he immediately relapsed. An idea was -found prevalent respecting a certain mystical animal, called Mesou or -Messessagen, who, when the earth was buried in water, had drawn it up and -restored it. Others spoke of a contest between the hare, the fox, the -beaver, and the seal, for the empire of the world. Among the principal -nations of Canada, the hare is thought to have attained a decided -preeminence; and hence the Great Spirit and the Great Hare are sometimes -used as synonymous terms. What should have raised this creature to such -distinction seems rather unaccountable; unless it were that its extreme -swiftness might appear something supernatural. Among the Ottowas alone -the heavenly bodies become an object of veneration; the sun appears to -rank as their supreme deity. - -To dive into the abyss of futurity has always been a favourite object -of superstition. It has been attempted by various means; but the Indian -seeks it chiefly through his dreams, which always bear with him a sacred -character. Before engaging in any high undertaking, especially in hunting -or war, the dreams of the principal chiefs are carefully watched and -studiously examined; and according to the interpretation their conduct is -guided. A whole nation has been set in motion by the sleeping fancies of -a single man. Sometimes a person imagines in his sleep that he has been -presented with an article of value by another, who then cannot, without -impropriety, leave the omen unfulfilled. When Sir William Johnson, during -the American war, was negotiating an alliance with a friendly tribe, the -chief confidentially disclosed that, during his slumbers, he had been -favoured with a vision of Sir William bestowing upon him the rich laced -coat which formed his full dress. The fulfilment of this revelation was -very inconvenient; yet, on being assured that it positively occurred, the -English commander found it advisable to resign his uniform. Soon after, -however, he unfolded to the Indian a dream with which he had himself -been favored, and in which the former was seen presenting him with a -large tract of fertile land most commodiously situated. The native ruler -admitted that, since the vision had been vouchsafed, it must be realized, -yet earnestly proposed to cease this mutual dreaming, which he found had -turned much to his own disadvantage. - -The manitou is an object of peculiar veneration; and the fixing upon -this guardian power is not only the most important event in the history -of a youth, but even constitutes his initiation into active life. As a -preliminary, his face is painted black, and he undergoes a severe fast, -which is, if possible, prolonged for eight days. This is preparatory -to the dream in which he is to behold the idol destined ever after to -afford him aid and protection. In this state of excited expectation, and -while every nocturnal vision is carefully watched, there seldom fails -to occur to his mind something which, as it makes a deep impression, is -pronounced his manitou. Most commonly it is a trifling and even fantastic -article; the head, beak, or claw of a bird, the hoof of a cow, or even -a piece of wood. However, having undergone a thorough perspiration in -one of their vapour-baths, he is laid on his back, and a picture of it -is drawn upon his breast by needles of fish-bone dipped in vermilion. A -good specimen of the original being procured, it is carefully treasured -up; and to it he applies in every emergency, hoping that it will inspire -his dreams, and secure to him every kind of good fortune. When, however, -notwithstanding every means of propitiating its favour, misfortunes -befall him, the manitou is considered as having exposed itself to just -and serious reproach. He begins with remonstrances, representing all -that has been done for it, the disgrace it incurs by not protecting its -votary, and, finally, the danger that, in case of repeated neglect, it -may be discarded for another. Nor is this considered merely as an empty -threat; for if the manitou is judged incorrigible, it is thrown away; and -by means of a fresh course of fasting, dreaming, sweating, and painting, -another is installed, from whom better success may be hoped. - -The absence of temples, worship, sacrifices, and all the observances -to which superstition prompts the untutored mind, is a remarkable -circumstance, and, as we have already remarked, led the early visiters -to believe that the Indians were strangers to all religious ideas. -Yet the missionaries found room to suspect that some of their great -feasts, in which every thing presented must be eaten, bore an idolatrous -character, and were held in honour of the Great Hare. The Ottawas, -whose mythological system seems to have been the most complicated, -were wont to keep a regular festival to celebrate the beneficence of -the sun; on which occasion the luminary was told that this service was -in return for the good hunting he had procured for his people, and as -an encouragement to persevere in his friendly cares. They were also -observed to erect an idol in the middle of their town, and sacrifice to -it; but such ceremonies were by no means general. On first witnessing -Christian worship, the only idea suggested by it was that of their -asking some temporal good, which was either granted or refused. The -missionaries mention two Hurons, who arrived from the woods soon after -the congregation had assembled. Standing without, they began to speculate -what it was the white men were asking, and then whether they were getting -it. As the service continued beyond expectation, it was concluded they -were _not_ getting it; and as the devotional duties still proceeded, they -admired the perseverance with which this rejected suit was urged. At -length, when the vesper hymn began, one of the savages observed to the -other: “Listen to them now in despair, crying with all their might.” - -The grand doctrine of a life beyond the grave was, among all the tribes -of America, most deeply cherished and most sincerely believed. They -had even formed a distinct idea of the region whither they hoped to -be transported, and of the new and happier mode of existence, free -from those wars, tortures, and cruelties which throw so dark a shade -over their lot upon earth. Yet their conceptions on this subject were -by no means either exalted or spiritualized. They expected simply a -prolongation of their present life and enjoyments, under more favourable -circumstances, and with the same objects furnished in greater choice -and abundance. In that brighter land the sun ever shines unclouded, -the forests abound with deer, the lakes and rivers with fish; benefits -which are farther enhanced in their imagination by a faithful wife and -dutiful children. They do not reach it, however, till after a journey -of several months, and encountering various obstacles; a broad river, a -chain of lofty mountains, and the attack of a furious dog. This favoured -country lies far in the west, at the remotest boundary of the earth, -which is supposed to terminate in a steep precipice, with the ocean -rolling beneath. Sometimes, in the too eager pursuit of game, the spirits -fall over, and are converted into fishes. The local position of their -paradise appears connected with certain obscure intimations received -from their wandering neighbours of the Mississippi, the Rocky Mountains, -and the distant shores of the Pacific. This system of belief labours -under a great defect, inasmuch as it scarcely connects felicity in the -future world with virtuous conduct in the present. The one is held to -be simply a continuation of the other; and under this impression, the -arms, ornaments, and everything that had contributed to the welfare of -the deceased, are interred along with him. This supposed assurance of -a future life so conformable to their gross habits and conceptions, -was found by the missionaries a serious obstacle when they attempted to -allure them by the hope of a destiny, purer and higher indeed, but less -accordant with their untutored conceptions. Upon being told that in the -promised world they would neither hunt, eat, drink, nor marry, many of -them declared that, far from endeavouring to reach such an abode, they -would consider their arrival there as the greatest calamity. Mention is -made of a Huron girl whom one of the Christian ministers was endeavouring -to instruct, and whose first question was what she would find to eat. -The answer being “Nothing,” she then asked what she would see; and being -informed that she would see the Maker of heaven and earth, she expressed -herself much at a loss how she should address him. - -[Illustration] - - - - -INDIAN FUNERALS. - - -Another sentiment, congenial with that now described, is most deeply -rooted in the mind of the Indians. This is reverence for the dead, -with which Chateaubriand, though somewhat hastily, considers them more -deeply imbued than any other people. During life they are by no means -lavish in their expressions of tenderness, but on the hour of final -separation it is displayed with extraordinary force. When any member -of a family becomes seriously ill, all the resources of magic and -medicine are exhausted in order to procure his recovery. When the fatal -moment arrives, all the kindred burst into loud lamentations, which -continue till some person possessing the requisite authority desires -them to cease. These expressions of grief, however, are renewed for a -considerable time at sunrise and sunset. After three days the funeral -takes place, when all the provisions which the family can procure are -expended in a feast, to which the neighbours are generally invited; and, -although on all solemn occasions it is required that every thing should -be eaten, the relations do not partake. These last cut off their hair, -cover their heads, paint their faces of a black colour, and continue -long to deny themselves every species of amusement. The deceased is -then interred with his arms and ornaments, his face painted, and his -person attired in the richest robes which they can furnish. It was the -opinion of one of the early missionaries, that the chief object of the -Hurons in their traffic with the French was to procure materials for -honouring their dead; and, as a proof of this, many of them have been -seen shivering half naked in the cold, while their hut contained rich -robes to be wrapped round them after their decease. The body is placed -in the tomb in an upright posture, and skins are carefully spread round -it, so that no part may touch the earth. This, however, is by no means -the final ceremony, being followed by another still more solemn and -singular. Every eighth, tenth, or twelfth year, according to the custom -of the different nations, is celebrated the festival of the dead; and, -till then, the souls are supposed to hover round their former tenement, -and not to depart for their final abode in the west. On this occasion -the people march in procession to the places of interment, open the -tombs, and, on beholding the mortal remains of their friends, continue -some time fixed in mournful silence. The women then break out into loud -cries, and the party begin to collect the bones, removing every remnant -of flesh. The remains are then wrapped in fresh and valuable robes, and -conveyed amid continual lamentation to the family cabin. A feast is then -given, followed during several days by dances, games, and prize-combats, -to which strangers often repair from a great distance. This mode of -celebration certainly accords very ill with the sad occasion; yet the -Greek and Roman obsequies were solemnized in a similar manner; nay, -in many parts of Scotland, till very recently, they were accompanied -by festival, and often by revelry. The relics are then carried to the -council-house of the nation, where they are hung for exhibition along -the walls, with fresh presents destined to be interred along with them. -Sometimes they are even displayed from village to village. At length, -being deposited in a pit previously dug in the earth, and lined with -the richest furs, they are finally entombed. Tears and lamentations are -again lavished; and during a few days food is brought to the place. The -bones of their fathers are considered by the Indians the strongest ties -to their native soil; and when calamity forces them to quit it, these -mouldering fragments are, if possible, conveyed along with them. - -[Illustration] - - - - -INDIAN CANNIBALISM. - - -It has been made a question whether the Indians can be justly charged -with cannibalism. It is certain that all the terms by which they -designate their inhuman mode of putting a prisoner to death bear -reference to this horrid practice. The expressions are to throw him into -the caldron, to devour him, to eat soup made of his flesh. It has hence -been plausibly inferred that this enormity really prevailed in early -times, but was changed, we can scarcely say mitigated, into the present -system of torture. Yet, as every action is described by them in terms -highly figurative, those now quoted may have been used as expressing -most fully the complete gratification of their revenge. Of this charge -they cannot now be either condemned or wholly acquitted. In the excited -fury of their passions, portions of the flesh are often seized, roasted, -and eaten, and draughts taken of the blood. To eat an enemy’s heart is -considered a peculiar enjoyment. Long mentions a gentleman who came upon -a party who were busy broiling a human heart, when he with difficulty -prevailed on them to desist. There is little hesitation among them, in -periods of scarcity, to relieve hunger with the flesh of their captives; -and during one war, this fate is said to have befallen many French -soldiers who fell into the hands of the Five Nations. Colonel Schuyler -told Colden, that, having entered the cabin of a chief who had some rich -soup before him, he was invited to partake. Being hungry and tired, he -readily agreed, till the ladle, being put into the great caldron, brought -up a human hand, the sight of which put an immediate end to his appetite -and meal. - - - - -INDIAN DANCES. - - -The dances of the Indians, even those at common festivals, are on an -extensive scale, requiring to a complete performance forty or fifty -persons, who execute their evolutions by following each other round -a great fire kindled in the centre. Their movements, monotonous but -violent, consist in stamping furiously on the ground, and often -brandishing their arms in a manner compared by an able writer to a -baker converting flour into dough. They keep good time; but the music -is so exceedingly simple that this implies little merit. They conclude -with a loud shout or howl, which echoes frightfully through the woods. -The dances in celebration of particular events are of a more varied -character, and often form a very expressive pantomime. The war-dance -is the most favourite and frequent. In this extraordinary performance, -a complete image is given of the terrible reality; the war-whoop is -sounded with the most frightful yells; the tomahawk is wildly brandished; -and the enemy are surprised, seized, and scalped, or carried off for -torture. The calumet-dance, which celebrates peace between nations, -and the marriage-dance, which represents domestic life, are much more -pleasing. Some mention is made of a mystic dance, carried on by the -jugglers or doctors, with strange superstitious ceremonies, and in which -a supernatural personage, termed by some the devil, rises and performs; -but it does not seem to have been witnessed by any European, and is said -to be now in a great measure disused. - - - - -INDIAN GAMES. - - -There are games to which the Indians are fondly attached, which, though -they be only ranked under the head of amusement, are yet constructed in -the same serious manner as their other transactions. Their great parties -are said to be collected by supernatural authority, communicated by -the jugglers; and they are preceded, like their wars and hunts, by a -course of fasting, dreaming, and other means of propitiating fortune. -The favourite game is that of the bone, in which small pieces of that -substance, resembling dice, and painted of different colours, are thrown -in the air, and according to the manner in which they fall, the game is -decided. Only two persons can play; but a numerous party, and sometimes -whole villages, embrace one side or the other, and look on with intense -interest. At each throw, especially if it be decisive, tremendous -shouts are raised; the players and spectators equally resemble -persons possessed; the air rings with invocations to the bones and to -the manitous. Their eagerness sometimes leads to quarreling and even -fighting, which on no other occasion ever disturb the interior of these -societies. To such a pitch are they occasionally worked up, that they -stake successively all they possess, and even their personal liberty; but -this description must apply only to the more southern nations, as slavery -was unknown among the Canadian Indians. - -A temporary interval of wild license, of emancipation from all the -restraints of dignity and decorum, seems to afford an enjoyment highly -prized in all rude societies. Corresponding with the saturnalia and -bacchanals of antiquity, the Indians have their festivals of dreams, -which, during fifteen days, enlivens the inaction of the coldest -season. Laying aside all their usual order and gravity, they run about, -frightfully disguised, and committing every imaginable extravagance. -He who meets another demands an explanation of his visions, and if not -satisfied, imposes some fantastic penalty. He throws upon him cold -water, hot ashes, or filth; sometimes, rushing into his cabin, he -breaks and destroys the furniture. Although everything appears wild and -unpremeditated, it is alleged that opportunities are often taken to give -vent to old and secret resentments. The period having elapsed, a feast is -given, order is restored, and the damages done are carefully repaired. - - - - -BEAUTIFUL TRAIT OF CHARACTER. - - -One M’Dougal, a native of Argyleshire, having emigrated to Upper Canada, -from anxiety to make the most of his scanty capital, or some other -motive, he purchased a location, where the price of land is merely -nominal, in a country thinly peopled, and on the extreme verge of -civilization. His first care was to construct a house, and plant in the -wild. This task finished, he spent his whole time, early and late, in the -garden and the fields. By vigorous exertions, and occasional assistance, -he brought a few acres of ground under crop; acquired a stock of cattle, -sheep and hogs; made additional inroads on the glade and the forest, -and, though his toils were hard, gradually and imperceptibly became, in -a rough way, “well enough to live,” as compared with the poverty he had -abandoned at home. - -His greatest discomforts were, distance from his neighbours, the church, -markets, and even the mill; and, along with these, the suspension (or -rather, the enjoyment) after long intervals of time, of those endearing -charities and friendly offices, which lend such a charm to social life. - -On one occasion, M’Dougal had a melder of corn to grind, and as the -distance was considerable, and the roads none of the smoothest, this -important part of his duty could only be performed by starting with the -sun, and returning with the going down of the same. In his absence, the -care of the cattle devolved on his spouse, and as they did not return -at the usual hour, the careful matron went out in quest of them. Beyond -its mere outskirts, the forest was, to her, _terra incognita_, in the -most emphatic sense of the term; and with no compass, or notched trees -to guide, it is not to be wondered at that she wandered long and wearily -to very little purpose. Like alps on alps, tall trees arose on every -side—a boundless continuity of shade—and, fatigued with the search, -she deemed it prudent to retrace her steps, while it was yet time. But -this resolution was much easier formed than executed; returning was as -dangerous as “going o’er,” and, after wandering for hours, she sunk on -the ground, her eyes swollen and filled with tears, and her mind agitated -almost to distraction. But here she had not rested many minutes, before -she was startled by the sound of approaching footsteps, and, anon, an -Indian hunter stood before her, “a stoic of the woods, a man without -fear.” Mrs. M’Dougal knew that Indians lived at no great distance, but -as she had never seen a member of the tribe, her emotions were those -of terror—quickening, it may be said, every pulse, and yet paralyzing -every limb. The Indian’s views were more comprehensive; constantly on -the look out, in search of the quarry, and accustomed to make circuits, -comprising the superficies of many a highland mountain and glen, he had -observed her, without being observed himself, knew her home, recognized -her person, comprehended her mishap, divined her errand, and immediately -beckoned her to follow him. The unfortunate woman understood his signal, -and obeyed it, as far as terror left her power; and, after a lengthened -sweep, which added not a little to her previous fatigue, they arrived at -the door of an Indian wigwam. - -Her conductor invited her to enter, by signs: but this she sternly -refused to do, dreading the consequence, and preferring death in the open -air to the tender mercies of cannibals within. Perceiving her reluctance, -and scanning her feelings, the hospitable Indian darted into the wigwam, -and communed with his wife, who, in a few minutes, also appeared: and, -by certain signs and sympathies, known only to females, calmed the -stranger’s fears, and induced her to enter their lowly abode. Venison was -instantly prepared for supper, and Mrs. M’Dougal—though still alarmed at -the novelty of her situation, found the viands delicious, and had rarely, -if ever, partaken of so savoury a meal. Aware that she was wearied, the -Indians removed from their place near the roof, two beautiful deer skins, -and, by stretching and fixing them across, divided the wigwam into two -apartments. Mats were also spread in both, and next, the stranger was -given to understand, that the further dormitory was expressly designed -for her accommodation. But here again her courage failed her, and to the -most pressing intreaties, she replied by signs, as well as she could, -that she would prefer to sit and sleep by the fire. This determination -seemed to puzzle the Indian and his squaw sadly. Often they looked at -each other, and conversed softly in their own language: and, at last, -the Red took the White woman by the hand, led her to her couch, and -became her bedfellow. In the morning she awoke greatly refreshed, and -anxious to depart, without further delay—but the Indian would on no -account permit it. Breakfast was prepared—another savoury and well-cooked -meal—and then the Indian accompanied his guest, and conducted her to the -very spot where the cattle were grazing. These he kindly drove from the -wood, on the verge of which Mrs. M’Dougal descried her husband, running -about every where, hallooing and seeking for her, in a state of absolute -distraction. Great was his joy, and great his gratitude to her Indian -benefactor, who was invited to the house, and treated to the best the -larder afforded, and presented, on his departure, with a suit of clothes. - -In about three days he returned, and endeavoured, by every wile, to -induce Mr. M’Dougal to follow him into the forest. But this invitation -the other positively declined—and the poor Indian went on his way, -obviously grieved and disappointed. But again he returned; and, though -words were wanting, renewed his intreaties—but still vainly, and -without effect: and then, as a last desperate effort, he hit upon an -expedient, which none, save an Indian hunter, would have thought of. -Mrs. M’Dougal had a nursling only a few months old—a fact the Indian -failed not to notice. After his pantomimic eloquence had been thrown -away, he approached the cradle, seized the child, and darted out of -the house with the speed of an antelope. The alarmed parents instantly -followed, supplicating and imploring, at the top of their voices. But the -Indian’s resolves were as fixed as fate—and away he went, slow enough -to encourage his pursuers, but still in the van by a good many paces, -and far enough ahead to achieve the secret purpose he had formed—like -the parent-bird, skimming the ground, when she wishes to wile the enemy -from her nest. Again and again Mr. M’Dougal wished to continue the chase -alone—but maternal anxiety baffled every remonstrance; and this anxiety -was, if possible, increased, when she saw the painted savage enter the -wood, and steer, as she thought, his course towards his own cabin. The -Indian, however, was in no hurry;—occasionally, he cast a glance behind, -poised the child almost like a feather, treading his way with admirable -dexterity, and kept the swaddling clothes so closely drawn around it, -that not even the winds of heaven were permitted to visit it roughly. -It is, of course, needless to go into all the details of this singular -journey, further than to say, that the Indian, at length, called a halt -on the margin of a most beautiful prairie, teeming with the richest -vegetation, and comprising many thousands of acres. In a moment the child -was restored to its parents—who, wondering what so strange a procedure -could mean, stood, for some minutes, panting for breath, and eyeing one -another in silent and speechless astonishment. - -The Indian, on the other hand, appeared overjoyed at the success of his -manœuvre—and never did a human being frisk about and gesticulate with -greater animation. We have heard, or read, of a professor of signs: and -supposing such a character were wanted, the selection could not—or, at -least should not—be a matter of difficulty, so long as even a remnant -remains of the aborigines of North America. All travellers agree in -describing their gestures as highly dignified, eloquent, and intelligent: -and we have the authority of Mr. M’Dougal for saying, that the hero of -the present strictly authentic tale, proved himself to be a perfect -master of the art. The restoration of the child—the beauty and wide -extent of the prairies, and various other circumstances combined—flashed -across our countryman’s mind—operating conviction where jealously and -distrust had lurked before. Mr. M’Dougal, in a trice, examined the soil, -and immediately saw the propriety of the advice given by the _untutored -one_. By a sort of tacit agreement, a day was fixed for the removal of -the materials of our countryman’s cabin, goods and chattels;—and the -Indian, true to his word, brought a detachment of his tribe to assist -in one of the most romantic “flittings” that ever was undertaken either -in the old or new world. In a few days a roomy log-house was fashioned, -and a garden formed in a convenient section of the beautiful prairie, -from which the smoke was seen curling, and the woodpecker tapping at -no great distance. M’Dougal was greatly pleased at the change—and no -wonder, seeing that he could almost boast of a body-guard as bold as the -bowmen of Robin Hood. His Indian friend speedily became a sort of foster -brother, and his tribe as faithful as the most attached Tail of Gillies -that ever surrounded a Highland chieftain. Even the stupid kine lowed, on -finding themselves suddenly transferred to a boundless range of richest -pasture:—and, up to the date of the last advices, were improving rapidly -in condition, and increasing in numbers. - -The little garden was smiling like a rose in the desert—grass, -overabundant, was gradually giving way to thriving crops, and the kine -so well satisfied with their _gang_, that the herds and enclosures were -like unheeded to keep them from the corn. The Indians continued friendly -and faithful—occasionally bringing presents of venison and other game, -and were uniformly rewarded from the stores of a dairy, overflowing with -milk, butter, and cheese. - -Attached as the Red man was to his own mode of life, he was induced -at length to form a part of the establishment, in the capacity of -grieve, or head shepherd—a duty he undertook most cheerfully, as it -still left him opportunities of meeting and communing with his friends, -and reconnoitering the altering denizens of the forest. Let us hope, -therefore, that no untoward accident will occur to mar this beautiful -picture of sylvan life; that the M’Dougal colony will wax stronger, till -every section of the prairie is forced to yield tribute to the spade and -the plough. - - - - -THE REFORMED INDIAN. - - -Some of the Indians believe, that the “Evil Spirit” is the maker of -spirituous liquors, from which, notwithstanding, hardly one of them can -refrain. An Indian near the Delaware Water Gap, told Mr. Heckewelder, -a missionary, that he had once, when under the influence of strong -liquor, killed the best Indian friend he had, fancying him to be his -worst avowed enemy. He said that the deception was complete; and that -while intoxicated, the face of his friend presented to _his_ eyes all -the features of the man with whom he was in a state of hostility. It is -impossible to express the horror which struck him, when he awoke from -that delusion. He was so shocked, that from that moment, he resolved -never more to taste of the maddening potion, of which he was convinced -the devil was the inventor; for that it could only be the “Evil Spirit” -who made him see his enemy when his friend was before him, and produced -so strong a delusion on his bewildered senses, that he actually killed -him. From that time until his death, which happened thirty years -afterwards, he never drank a drop of ardent spirits, which he always -called “the devil’s blood;” and was firmly persuaded that the devil, or -some of his infernal spirits, had a hand in preparing it. - - - - -FIDELITY. - - -Among the North American Indians, one of the first lessons they inculcate -on their children, is duty to their parents, and respect for old age; -and there is not among the most civilized nations, any people who more -strictly observe the duty of filial obedience. A father need only to say, -in the presence of his children, “I want such a thing done”—“I want one -of my children to go upon such an errand”—“Let me see who is the good -child that will do it.” The word _good_ operates as it were by magic, and -the children immediately vie with each other to comply with the parent’s -wishes. If a father sees an old decrepid man or woman pass by, led along -by a child, he will draw the attention of his own children to the object, -by saying, “What a _good_ child that must be, which pays such attention -to the aged! That child, indeed, looks forward to the time when it will -likewise be old, and need its children’s help.” Or he will say, “May the -Great Spirit, who looks upon him, grant this _good_ child a long life!” - - - - -STRATAGEM DEFEATED. - - -Early in the war of the American revolution, a Sergeant, who travelled -through the woods of New Hampshire, on his way to the American army, met -with a singular adventure, which ended much to his credit. - -He had twelve men with him. Their route was far from any settlement, and -they were obliged every night to encamp in the woods. The Sergeant had -seen a good deal of the Indians, and understood them well;—early in the -afternoon, one day, as they were marching on, over bogs, swamps, and -brooks, under the towering maple trees, a body of Indians, exceeding -their own number, rushed out upon a hill in front of them. - -They appeared to be pleased at meeting with the Sergeant and his party. -They considered them, they said, as their best friends; for themselves, -they had taken up the hatchet for the Americans, and would scalp and -strip those rascally English for them, like so many wild cats. “How do -you do, pro?” (meaning brother) said one. “How do you do, pro?” said -another, and so they went about, shaking hands with the Sergeant and his -twelve men. - -They went off, at last, and the Sergeant, having marched onward a mile or -two, halted his men, and addressed them,—“My brave fellows,” said he, “we -must use all possible caution, or before morning we shall all of us be -dead men. You are amazed, but depend upon me, these Indians have tried to -put our suspicion to sleep; you will see more of them by-and-bye.” - -It was concluded, finally, to adopt the following scheme for defence: -they encamped for the night, near a stream of water, which protected them -from behind. A large oak was felled, and a brilliant fire kindled; each -man cut a log of wood, about the size of his body, rolled it nicely up -in his blanket, placed his hat on the end of it, and laid it before the -fire, that the enemy might take it for a man. - -Thirteen logs were fitted out in this way, representing the Sergeant and -his twelve men. They then placed themselves, with loaded guns, behind the -fallen tree; by this time it was dark, but the fire was kept burning till -midnight. The Sergeant knew, that if the Savages ever came, they would -come now. - -A tall Indian was seen, at length, through the glimmering of the fire, -which was getting low. He moved cautiously towards them, skulking, as an -Indian always does. He seemed to suspect, at first, that a guard might -be watching, but seeing none, he came forward more boldly, rested on -his toes, and was seen to move his finger, as he counted the thirteen -men, sleeping, as he supposed, by the fire. He counted them again, and -retired; another came up, and did the same. Then the whole party, sixteen -in number, came up and glared silently at the logs, till they seemed to -be satisfied they were fast asleep. Presently they took aim, fired their -whole number of guns upon the logs, yelled the horrid war-whoop, and -pushed forward to murder and scalp their supposed victims. The Sergeant -and his men were ready for them; they fired upon them, and not one of the -Indians was left to tell the story of that night. The Sergeant reached -the army in safety. - - - - -SCENES IN KING WILLIAM’S WAR, 1689. - - -SURPRISE OF DOVER. - -Thirteen years had almost elapsed since the seizure of the 400 Indians, -at Cocheco, by Major Waldron; during all which time an inextinguishable -thirst of revenge had been cherished among them, which never till now -found opportunity for gratification. Wonolanset, one of the sachems of -Penacook, who was dismissed with his people at the time of the seizure, -always observed his father’s dying charge, not to quarrel with the -English; but Hagkins, another sachem, who had been treated with neglect -by Cranfield, was more ready to listen to the seducing invitations of -Castine’s emissaries. Some of those Indians, who were then seized and -sold into slavery abroad, had found their way home, and could not rest -till they had their revenge. Accordingly a confederacy being formed -between the tribes of Penacook and Pigwacket, and the strange Indians -(as they were called) who were incorporated with them, it was determined -to surprise the major and his neighbours, among whom they had all this -time been peaceably conversant. - -In that part of the town of Dover which lies about the first falls in -the river Cocheco, were five garrisoned houses; three on the north side, -called respectively, Waldron, Otis, and Heard; and two on the south side, -Peter Coffin and his son’s. These houses were surrounded with timber -walls, the gates of which, as well as the house doors, were secured with -bolts and bars. The neighbouring families retired to these houses by -night; but by an unaccountable negligence, no watch was kept. The Indians -who were daily passing through the town, visiting and trading with the -inhabitants, as usual in time of peace, viewed their situation with an -attentive eye. Some hints of a mischievous design had been given out by -their squaws; but in such dark and ambiguous terms that no one could -comprehend their meaning. Some of the people were uneasy; but Waldron, -who, from a long course of experience, was intimately acquainted with -the Indians, and on other occasions had been ready enough to suspect -them, was now so thoroughly secure, that when some of the people hinted -their fears to him, he merrily bade them to go and plant their pumpkins, -saying that he would tell them when the Indians would break out. The very -evening before the mischief was done, being told by a young man that the -town was full of Indians, and the people were much concerned; he answered -that he knew the Indians very well, and there was no danger. - -The plan which the Indians had preconcerted was, that two squaws should -go to each of the garrisoned houses in the evening, and ask leave to -lodge by the fire; that in the night when the people were asleep they -should open the doors and gates, and give the signal by a whistle, -upon which the strange Indians, who were to be within hearing, should -rush in, and take their long meditated revenge. This plan being ripe -for execution, on the evening of Thursday the 27th of June, two squaws -applied to each of the garrisons for lodging, as they frequently did in -time of peace. They were admitted into all but the younger Coffin’s, -and the people, at their request, shewed them how to open the doors, in -case they should have occasion to go out in the night. Mesandowit, one -of their chiefs, went to Waldron’s garrison, and was kindly entertained, -as he had often been before. The squaws told the major, that a number -of Indians were coming to trade with him the next day, and Mesandowit -while at supper, with his usual familiarity, said, “Brother Waldron, what -would you do if the strange Indians should come?” The major carelessly -answered, that he could assemble 100 men, by lifting up his finger. In -this unsuspecting confidence the family retired to rest. - -When all was quiet, the gates were opened and the signal given. The -Indians entered, set a guard at the door, and rushed into the major’s -apartment, which was an inner room. Awakened by the noise, he jumped out -of bed, and though now advanced in life to the age of eighty years, he -retained so much vigour as to drive them with his sword through two or -three doors, but as he was returning for his other arms, they came behind -him, stunned him with a hatchet, drew him into his hall, and seating him -in an elbow chair on a long table insultingly asked him, “Who shall judge -Indians now?” They then obliged the people in the house to get them some -victuals: and when they had done eating, they cut the major across the -breast and belly with knives, each one with a stroke saying, “I cross out -my account.” They then cut off his nose and ears, forcing them into his -mouth—and when, spent with the loss of blood, he was falling down from -the table, one of them held his own sword under him, which put an end to -his misery. They also killed his son in law Abraham Lee; but took his -daughter Lee with several others, and having pillaged the house, left it -on fire. Otis’s garrison, which was next to the major’s, met with the -same fate; he was killed, with several others, and his wife and child -were captured. Heard’s was saved by the barking of a dog just as the -Indians were entering: Elder Wentworth, who was awakened by the noise, -pushed them out, and falling on his back, set his feet against the gate -and held it till he had alarmed the people; two balls were fired through -it but both missed him. Coffin’s house was surprised, but as the Indians -had no particular enmity to him, they spared his life, and the lives of -his family, and contended themselves with pillaging the house. Finding -a bag of money, they made him throw it by handfuls on the floor, while -they amused themselves in scrambling for it. They then went to the house -of his son who would not admit the squaws in the evening, and summoned -him to surrender, promising him quarter: he declined their offer, and -determined to defend his house, till they brought out his father and -threatened to kill him before his eyes; filial affection then overcame -his resolution, and he surrendered. They put both families together into -a deserted house, intending to reserve them for prisoners; but while the -Indians were busy in plundering, they all escaped. - -Twenty-three people were killed in this surprisal, and twenty-nine -were captured; five or six houses with the mills were burned; and so -expeditious were the Indians in the execution of their plot, that before -the people could be collected from the other parts of the town to oppose -them, they fled with their prisoners and booty. As they passed by Heard’s -garrison in their retreat, they fired upon it, but the people being -prepared and resolved to defend it, and the enemy being in haste, it was -preserved. The preservation of its owner was more remarkable. - -Elizabeth Heard, with her three sons and a daughter, and some others, -were returning in the night from Portsmouth; they passed up the river -in their boat unperceived by the Indians, who were then in possession of -the houses; but suspecting danger by the noise which they heard, after -they had landed they betook themselves to Waldron’s garrison, where -they saw lights, which they imagined were set up for direction to those -who might be seeking a refuge. They knocked and begged earnestly for -admission, but no answer being given, a young man of the company climbed -up the wall, and saw, to his inexpressible surprise, an Indian standing -in the door of the house with his gun. The woman was so overcome with the -fright that she was unable to fly, but begged her children to shift for -themselves, and they with heavy hearts left her. When she had a little -recovered she crawled into some bushes, and lay there till day-light: she -then perceived an Indian coming toward her with a pistol in his hand, -he looked at her and went away; returning, he looked at her again, and -she asked him what he would have. He made no answer, but ran yelling to -the house, and she saw him no more. She kept her place till the house -was burned and the Indians were gone, and then returning home found her -own house safe. Her preservation in these dangerous circumstances was -more remarkable, if (as it is supposed) it was an instance of justice -and gratitude in the Indians: for at the time when the 400 were seized -in 1676, a young Indian escaped and took refuge in her house, where she -concealed him; in return for which kindness he promised her that he -never would kill her, nor any of her family in any future war, and that -he would use his influence with the other Indians to the same purpose. -This Indian was one of the party who surprised the place, and she was -well known to the most of them. - -The same day, after the mischief was done, a letter from Secretary -Addington, written by order of the government, directed to Major Waldron, -giving him notice of the intention of the Indians to surprise him under -pretence of trade, fell into the hands of his son. This design was -communicated to Governor Bradstreet by Major Henchman of Chelmsford, who -had learned it of the Indians. The letter was dispatched from Boston, the -day before, by Mr. Weare; but some delay which he met with at Newbury -ferry prevented his arrival in season. - -The prisoners taken at this time were mostly carried to Canada, and sold -to the French; and these, so far as can be learned, were the first that -ever were carried thither. One of these prisoners was Sarah Gerrish, a -remarkably fine child, of seven years old, and grand-daughter of Major -Waldron, in whose house she lodged that fatal night. Some circumstances -attending her captivity are truly affecting. When she was awakened by the -noise of the Indians in the house, she crept into another bed, and hid -herself under the clothes to escape their search. She remained in their -hands till the next winter, and was sold from one to another several -times. An Indian girl once pushed her into a river; but, catching by -the bushes, she escaped drowning, yet durst not tell how she came to be -wet. Once she was so weary with travelling, that she did not awake in -the morning till the Indians were gone, and then found herself alone in -the woods, covered with snow, and without any food; having found their -tracks, she went crying after them till they heard her and took her with -them. At another time they kindled a great fire, and the young Indians -told her she was to be roasted. She burst into tears, threw her arms -round her master’s neck, and begged him to save her, which he promised -to do if she would behave well. Being arrived in Canada, she was bought -by the Intendant’s lady, who treated her courteously, and sent her to a -nunnery for education. But when Sir William Phips was at Quebec she was -exchanged, and returned to her friends, with whom she lived till she was -sixteen years old. - -The wife of Richard Otis was taken at the same time, with an infant -daughter of three months old. The French priests took this child under -their care, baptised her by the name of Christina, and educated her in -the Romish religion. She passed some time in a nunnery, but declined -taking the veil, and was married to a Frenchman, by whom she had two -children. But her desire to see New England was so strong, that upon an -exchange of prisoners in 1714, being then a widow, she left both her -children, who were not permitted to come with her, and returned home, -where she abjured the Romish faith. M. Siguenot, her former confessor, -wrote her a flattering letter, warning her of her danger, inviting her -to return to the bosom of the catholic church, and repeating many gross -calumnies which had formerly been vented against Luther and the other -reformers. This letter being shown to Governor Burnet, he wrote her a -sensible and masterly answer, refuting the arguments, and detecting the -falsehoods it contained: both these letters were printed. She was married -afterwards to Captain Thomas Baker, who had been taken at Deerfield, in -1704, and lived in Dover, where she was born, till the year 1773. The -Indians had been seduced to the French interest by popish emissaries, who -had begun to fascinate them with their religious and national prejudices. -They had now learned to call the English heretics, and that to extirpate -them as such was meritorious in the sight of heaven. When their minds -were filled with religious frenzy, they became more bitter and implacable -enemies than before; and finding the sale of scalps and prisoners turn -to good account in Canada, they had still farther incitement to continue -their depredations, and prosecute their vengeance. - - -TREATMENT OF THE PRISONERS AT SALMON FALLS IN 1690. - -The following instances of cruelty, exercised towards the prisoners -taken at Salmon falls, are mentioned by Dr. Mather. Robert Rogers, a -corpulent man, being unable to carry the burden which the Indians imposed -upon him, threw it in the path and went aside in the woods to conceal -himself. They found him by his track, stripped, beat, and pricked him -with their swords: then tied him to a tree and danced round him till they -had kindled a fire. They gave him time to pray, and take leave of his -fellow prisoners, who were placed round the fire to see his death. They -pushed the fire toward him, and when he was almost stifled, took it away -to give him time to breathe, and thus prolong his misery; they drowned -his dying groans with their hideous singing and yelling, all the while -dancing round the fire, cutting off pieces of his flesh and throwing them -in his face. When he was dead they left his body broiling on the coals, -in which state it was found by his friends and buried. Mehetabel Goodwin -was taken with a child of five months old; when it cried they threatened -to kill it, which made the mother go aside and sit for hours together in -the snow to lull it to sleep; her master seeing that this hindered her -from travelling, took the child, struck its head against a tree, and hung -it on one of the branches; she would have buried it but he would not -let her, telling her that if she came again that way she might have the -pleasure of seeing it. She was carried to Canada, and after five years -returned home. Mary Plaisted was taken out of her bed, having lain in -but three weeks: they made her travel with them through the snow and “to -ease her of her burden,” as they said, struck the child’s head against a -tree, and threw it into a river. An anecdote of another kind may relieve -the reader after these tragical accounts. Thomas Toogood was pursued -by three Indians and overtaken by one of them, who having enquired his -name, was preparing strings to bind him, holding his gun under his arm, -which Toogood seized and went backward, keeping the gun presented at him, -and protesting that he would shoot him if he alarmed the others who had -stopped on the opposite side of the hill. By this dexterity he escaped -and got safe into Cocheco; while his adversary had no recompense in his -power but to call after him by the name of Nogood. - - - - -FOOTNOTES - - -[1] General Jackson. - -[2] Published in the Mobile Com. Register. March, 1824. - -[3] This speech is the most manly and dignified piece of Indian oratory -that has ever met our eye. It even surpasses the admired speech of -Caractacus, the Briton, when led captive to Rome;—and is, in no wise, -inferior to that of Logan. - -[4] This interesting fact of a young Indian Chief of the Pawnee nation, -at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, who was on a visit to Washington in -the winter of 1824, is extracted from a letter of the Rev. Richard Reece, -to the editor of the London Wesleyan Methodist Magazine. - -[5] In 1775 Shenandoh was present at a treaty made in Albany. At night he -was excessively drunk; and in the morning, found himself in the street, -stripped of all his ornaments, and every article of clothing. His pride -revolted at his self-degradation, and he resolved never more to deliver -himself over to the power of ‘strong water.’ - -[6] The Editor of the Indian Anecdotes, is not responsible for the -sentiments, which any of the Anecdotes of this collection may seem to -illustrate. And although he has carefully omitted such as would tend to -corrupt, or exert an immoral influence on the character; he disclaims -every political or religious partiality. The above has been introduced as -an interesting specimen of Indian logic. - -[7] The Mandan tribe is now entirely extinct—_Catlin._ - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOYS' BOOK OF INDIAN -BATTLES AND ADVENTURES *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. 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