HABITS AND CUSTOMS OF THE PIONEERS - 260. DRESS AND FURNITURE. In these days of primitive simplicity the women were not afraid to work. They milked, cooked, spun, wove, and made garments for themselves and the other members of the household. The men raised their little crops, brought in meat, generally from the woods, ground the corn, fought the Indians, built the cabins, and protected the women. Dress did not then require so much labor and trigonometry as it does now. Then six yards of linsey would envelop the natural form of the pioneer woman ; now twenty-six scarce will suffice, besides other accessories, too numerous and intricate to mention. Then buckskin breeches, linsey hunting-shirt, coon-skin cap, and moccasins encased the stalwart form of' the hunter; now the perfumed fop, dressed in broadcloth, beaver, kid, and patent leather, is redolent with musk and night-blooming cereus. Tin cups were not aspired to except by the wealthy. The table consisted of a hewed slab, with four legs, and for chairs, a stool of the same material, with three legs. For bureaus and wardrobes (they didn't know what a dressing-case meant), a hickory tree was girdled all around in two places, a line cut through from one to the other, and the bark taken off and sewed together, with a bottom and cover of the same material, which, when smoothed, made a very good article. We take a description of the hunting-shirt from Western Annals: This was a kind of loose frock, reaching half way down the thighs, with large sleeves, open before, and so wide as to lap over a foot or more when belted. The cape was large, and sometimes handsomely fringed with a raveled piece of cloth of' a different color. The bosom of his dress served as a wallet, to hold a chunk of bread, calve's jerk, tow for wiping the barrel of' his rifle, or any thing necessary for the hunter or warrior. The belt, which was al-ways tied behind, answered various purposes. In cold weather the PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS - 261 mittens, and sometimes the bullet-bag, the tomahawk, and knife, were attached to it. The hunting-shirt was generally made of linsey, sometimes of coarse linen, and frequently of deerskin, which latter was very disagreeable when wet. "The thighs were protected by breeches and leggins, and the feet by moccasins, made generally out of a single piece of buckskin, with a gathering seam along the top of the foot, and another from the bottom of the heel as high as the ankle joint. Flaps were left on each side to fasten tightly around the ankle and leg by means of deerskin thongs. In cold weather they were stuffed with dry leaves or hair, which kept the feet warm, but in wet weather they were useless, and it is said, ‘only a decent way of going bare-footed.' " DEFENSES. The means of defense consisted of cabins, block-houses, and stockades. A range of cabins built about six feet apart, joined together by logs on the outside, generally formed one side of the fort. On the exposed side the walls were from ten to twelve feet high, from which the roof sloped inward. But few of these cabins had a puncheon floor, mostly being earthen. After the ancient custom of castles, the block-houses were built at each angle of the fort or stockade. They projected about two feet beyond the outer walls of the cabins. Their upper stories were nearly two feet every way larger than the lower, leaving an opening at the commencement of the second story, to prevent the enemy from making a lodgment under their walls. A large folding gate, made of thick slabs, nearest the spring, closed the fort. These rude structures were furnished with port-holes at proper heights and distances. It will be remembered that all of these were made without a nail, spike, or iron fastening of any description. HEALTH. Owing to the defective covering of the feet, more than to any other circumstance, the greater number of our hunters and warriors were afflicted with the rheumatism in their limbs. Of this disease they were all apprehensive in cold or wet weather, and 262 - HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY. therefore always slept with their feet to the fire to prevent or cure it as well as they could. This practice unquestionably had a very salutary effect, and prevented many of them from becoming confirmed cripples in early life. WEDDINGS. For a long time after the first settlement of this country the inhabitants in general married young. There was no distinction of rank and very little of fortune. On these accounts the first impression of love resulted in marriage, and a family establishment cost but little labor and nothing else. In the first years of the settlement of this country a wedding engaged the attention of a whole neighborhood, and the frolic was anticipated by old and young with eager anticipation. This is not. to be wondered at, when it is told that a wedding was almost the only gathering which was not accompanied with the labor of reaping, log rolling, building a cabin, or planning some scout or campaign. In the morning of the wedding day the groom and attendants assembled at the house of his father for the purpose of reaching the mansion of his bride by noon, which was the usual time for celebrating the nuptials, which, for certain reasons, must take place before dinner. Let the reader imagine an assemblage of people, without a store, tailor or mantua-maker within a hundred miles; and an assemblage of horses, without a blacksmith or saddler within an equal distance. The gentlemen dressed in shoe-packs, moccasins, leather breeches, leggins, linsey hunting shirts, all homemade. The ladies dressed in linsey petticoats and linsey or linen bed-gowns, coarse shoes, stockings, handkerchiefs, and buckskin gloves, if any. If there were any buckles, rings, buttons or ruffles, they were the relics of old times—family pieces from parents or grandparents. The horses were caparisoned with old saddles, old bridles or halters, and pack-saddles, with a bag or blanket thrown over then : a rope or string as often constituted the girth as a piece of leather. The march, in double file, was often interrupted by the narrowness and obstructions of our horse-paths, as they were called, for we had no roads ; and these difficulties were often increased, sometimes by the good and sometimes by the ill-will of neighbors, by PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS - 263 falling trees and tying grape vines across the way. Sometimes an ambuscade was formed by the wayside, and an unexpected discharge of several guns took place, so as to cover the wedding company with smoke. Let the reader imagine the scene which followed this discharge : the sudden spring of the horses, the shrieks of the girls, and the chivalric bustle of their partners to save them from falling. Sometimes, in spite of all that could be done to prevent it, some were thrown to the ground. If a wrist, elbow, or ankle happened to be sprained, it was tied with a handkerchief and little more was thought or said about it. Another ceremony took place before the party reached the house of the bride, after the practice of making whisky began, which was at an early period : when the party were about one mile from the place of their destination, two young men would single out to run for the bottle; the worse the path, the more logs, brush and deep hollows the better, as these obstacles afforded an opportunity for the greater display of intrepidity and horsemanship. The English fox chase in point of danger to the riders and their horses, is nothing to this race for the bottle. The start was announced by an Indian yell ; logs, brush, muddy hollows, hill and glen were speedily passed by the rival ponies. The bottle was always filled for the occasion, so that there was no use for judges ; for the first who reached the door was presented with the prize, with which he returned in triumph to the company. On approaching them, he announced his victory over his rival by a shrill whoop. At the head of the troop, he gave the bottle first to the groom and his attendants, and then to each pair in succession to the rear of the line, giving each a dram and then putting the bottle in the bosom of his hunting-shirt, took his station in the company. The ceremony of the marriage preceded the dinner, which was a substantial backwoods feast of beef; pork, fowls, and sometimes venison and bear meat, roasted and boiled, with plenty of potatoes, cabbage and other vegetables. During the dinner the greatest hilarity always prevailed; although the table might be a large slab of timber, hewed out with a broad ax, supported by four sticks set in augur holes, and the furniture some old pewter dishes, the rest wooden bowls and trenches; a few pewter spoons, much battered about the edges, were to be seen at some tables. The rest were made of horns. If knives were scarce, the deficiency was made up by scalping knives which were carried in sheaths suspended to the belt of the hunting shirt. 264 - HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY. After dinner the dancing commenced and generally lasted until the next morning. The figures of the dances were three and four handed reels, or square sets, and jigs. The commencement was always a square four, which was followed by what was called jigging it off: that is, two of the four would single out for a jig and were followed by the remaining couple. The jigs were often accompanied by what was called cutting: that is, when either of the parties became tired of the dance, on intimation the place was supplied by some one of the company without any interruption of the (lance. In this way a dance was often continued till the musician was heartily tired of his situation. Toward the latter part of the night, if any of the company, through weariness, attempted to conceal themselves for the purpose of sleeping, they were hunted up, paraded on the floor, and the fiddler ordered to play "Hang on till tomorrow morning." About nine or ten o'clock, a deputation of young ladies stole off the bride and put her to bed. In doing this it frequently happened that they had to ascend a ladder, instead of a pair of stairs, leading from the dining and ball room to the loft, the floor of which was made of clapboards lying loose and without nails. This ascent, one might think, would put the bride and her attendants to the blush ; but as the foot of the ladder was commonly behind the door, which was purposely opened for the occasion, and its rounds at the inner ends were well hung with hunting shirts, petticoats and other articles of clothing, the candles being on the opposite side of the house, the exit of the bride was noticed by but few. This done, a deputation of young men in like manner stole oft' the groom and placed him snugly by the side of his bride. The dance still continued, and if seats happened to be scarce, which was very often the case, every young man, when not engaged in the dance, was obliged to offer his lap as a seat for one of the girls, and the offer was sure to be accepted. In the midst of this hilarity the bride and groom were not forgotten. Pretty late in the night, some one would remind the company that the new couple must stand in need of some refreshment: "Black Betty," which was the name of the bottle, was called for, and sent up the ladder; but some times " Black Betty" did not go alone, many times as much bread, beef and cabbage as would afford a good meal for half a dozen hungry men were sent along with her. The young couple were compelled to eat and drink, more or less, of whatever was offered them. PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS - 265 It often happened that some neighbors, or relations, not being asked to the wedding took offense, and the mode of revenge adopted by them, on such occasions, was that of . cutting off the manes, foretops, and tails of the horses of the wedding company. SETTLING A YOUNG COUPLE. We will next state the usual manner of settling a young couple in the world : A spot was selected on a piece of laud, of one of the parents, for their habitation. A day was appointed shortly after their marriage, for commencing the work of building their cabin. The fatigue party consisted of choppers, whose business it was to fell the trees, and cut them off at proper lengths ; a man with a team for hauling them to the place, and arranging them, properly assorted, at the sides and ends of the building; a carpenter, if such he might be called, whose business it was to search the woods for a proper tree for making clapboards for the roof. The tree for this purpose must be straight grained, and from three to four feet in diameter. The boards were split four feet long, with a large f row, and as wide as the timber would allow. They were used without planing or shaving. Another division was employed in getting puncheons for the floor of the cabin ; this was done by splitting trees, about eighteen inches in diameter, and hewing the faces of them with a broad-ax. They were half the length of the floor, they were intended to make. The materials for the cabin were mostly prepared on the first day, and sometimes the foundation laid in the evening. The second day was alloted for the raising. PUTTING UP THE HOUSE. In the morning of the next day, the neighbors collected for the raising. The first thing to be done was. the election of four corner men, whose business it was to notch and place the logs. The rest of the company furnished them with the timbers. • In the mean-time, the boards and puncheons were collected for the floor and roof, so that by the time the cabin was a few rounds high, the sleepers and floors began to be laid. The door was made by sawing, or cutting, the logs in one side, so as to make an opening about 266 - HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY. three feet wide. This opening was secured by upright pieces of timber, about three inches thick, through which holes were bored into the ends of the logs for the purpose of pinning them fast. A similar opening, but wider, was made at the end for the chimney. This was built of logs, and made large to admit of a back and jambs of stone. At the square, two end logs projected a foot or eighteen inches beyond the wall to receive the butting-poles, as they were called, against which the ends of the first row of clap-boards was supported. The roof was formed by making the end logs shorter, until a single log formed the comb of the roof; on these logs the clapboards were placed, the ranges of them laping some distance over those next below them, and kept in their places by logs placed at proper distances upon them. The roof, and sometimes the floor, were finished on the same day of the raising. . A third day was commonly spent by a few carpenters in leveling off the floor, making a clapboard door, and a table. This last was made of a split slab, and supported by four round logs set in auger holes. A few three legged stools were made in the same manner. A few pins stuck in the logs, at the back of the house, supported some clapboards which served for shelves for the table furniture. A single fork, placed with its lower end in a hole in the floor, and the upper end fastened to a joist served for a bedstead, by placing a pole in the fork with one end through a crack between the logs of the wall. This front pole was crossed by a shorter one within the fork, with its outer end through another crack. From the front pole, through a crack between the logs of the end of the house; the boards were put on which formed the bottom of the bed. Sometimes other poles, were pinned to the fork a little above these, for the purpose of supporting the front and foot of the bed, while the walls were the supports of its back and head. A few pegs around the walls for a display of the coats of the women, and hunting shirts of the men, and two small forks, or buck's horns, to a joist for the rifle and shot pouch, completed the carpenters work. In the mean time, masons were at work. With the heart pieces of the timber, of which the clapboards were made, they made billets for chucking up the cracks between the logs of the cabin and chimney; a large bed of mortar was made for daubing up those cracks. A few stones formed the back and jambs of the chimney. PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS - 267 HOUSE WARMING. The cabin being finished, the ceremony of house-warming took place, before the young couple were permitted to move into it. The house-warming was a dance of a whole night's continuance, made up of the relations of the bride and groom, and their neighbors. On the day following the young couple took possession of their new mansion. At house-raisings, log-rollings, and harvest parties, every one was expected to do his duty faithfully. A person who did not perform his share of the labor on these occasions, was designated by the epithet of "Lawrence," or some other title still more opprobrious; and when it came his turn to require the like aid from his neighbors, the idler soon felt his punishment in their refusal to at-tend his calls. MILITARY. Although there was no legal compulsion to the performance of military duty, yet every man of full age and size was expected to do his full share of public service. If he did not do so he was "hated out as a coward." Even the want of any article of war equipment, such as ammunition, a sharp flint, a priming-wire, a scalping knife, or tomahawk, was thought highly disgraceful. A man who, without reasonable cause, failed to go on a scout or campaign, when it came his turn, met with an expression of indignation in the countenances of his neighbors, and epithets of dishonor were fastened upon him without mercy. DEBTS. Debts, which make such an uproar in civilized life, were but little known among our forefathers, at the early settlement of this country. After the depreciation of the continental paper they had no money of any kind; everything purchased was paid for in produce or labor. A good cow and calf was often the price of a bushel of alum salt. If a contract was not punctually fulfilled, the credit of the delinquent was at an end. 268 - HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY. THEFTS. Any petty theft was punished with all the infamy that could be heaped upon the offender. A man on a campaign stole from his comrade a cake out of the ashes, in which it was baking. He was immediately named "the bread rounds." This epithet of reproach was bandied about in this way: When he came in sight of a group of men, one of them would call, "Who goes there?" Another would answer, " The bread rounds." If any one meant to be more serious about the matter, he would call out, " Who stole a cake out of the ashes?" Another replied by giving the name of the man in full. To this a third would give confirmation by exclaiming, " That is true, and no lie." This kind of "tongue lashing" he was doomed to bear for the rest of the campaign, as well as for years after his return home. If a theft was detected in any of the frontier settlements, a summary mode of punishment was always resorted to. The first settlers had a kind of innate or hereditary detestation of the crime of theft in any shape or degree, and their maxim was that a "thief must be whipped." If the theft was of something of some value, a kind of jury of the neighborhood, after hearing the testimony, would condemn the culprit to Moses' law, that is, to forty stripes, save one. If the theft was of some small article, the offender was (loomed to carry on his back a flag of the United States, which then consisted of thirteen stripes. In either ease, some able hands were selected to execute the sentence, so that the stripes were sure to be well laid on. This punishment was followed by a sentence of exile. Ile was then informed that he must decamp in so many days, and be seen there no more, on penalty of having his stripes doubled. CHARACTERISTICS. With all their rudeness, these people were given to hospitality, and freely divided their rough fare with a neighbor or stranger, and would have been offended at the offer of pay. In their settlements and forts they lived, they worked, they fought and feasted, or suffered together, in cordial harmony. They were warm and constant in their friendships. On the other hand, they were re- PIONEER HABITS AND CUSTOMS - 269 vengeful in their resentments, and the point of honor sometimes led to personal combats. If one man called another a liar, he was considered as having given a challenge, which the person who received it must accept or be deemed a coward, and the charge was generally answered on the spot with a blow. If the injured person was decidedly unable to fight the aggressor, he might get a friend to do it for him. The same thing took place on a charge of cowardice, or any other dishonorable action. A battle must follow, and the person who made the charge must fight either the person against whom he made the charge, or any champion who chose to espouse his cause. Thus circumstanced, our people in early times were much more cautious of speaking evil of their neighbors than they are at present. DISPUTES. Sometimes pitched battles occurred, in which time, place, and seconds were appointed beforehand. A writer remembers having seen one of those pitched battles in his father's fort, when a boy. One of the young men knew very well beforehand that he should get the worst of the battle, and no doubt repented the engagement to fight, but there was no getting over it. The point of honor demanded the risk of battle. He got his whipping. They then shook hands, and were good friends afterward. The mode of single combat in those days was dangerous in the extreme. Although no weapons were used, fists, teeth, and feet were employed at will, but above all, the detestable practice of gouging, by which eyes were sometimes put out, rendered this mode of fighting frightful indeed. It was not, however, so destructive as the stiletto of an Italian, the knife of a Spaniard, the small-sword of a Frenchman, or the pistol of the American or English duelist. MORALITY. Instances of seduction and bastardy did not frequently happen in our early times. An instance of the former is remembered, in which the life of the man was put in jeopardy by the resentment of the family to which the girl belonged. Indeed, considering the chivalrous temper of our people, this crime could not then take 270 - HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY. place without great personal danger from the brothers or other relations of the victims of seduction, family honor being then estimated at a high rate. Profane language was not more prevalent in early times than at present. There was no other vestige of the Christian religion than a faint observation of Sunday, and that merely as a day of rest for the aged, and a play day for the young. TATTLING. If a woman was given to tattling and slandering her neighbors, she was furnished, by common consent, with a kind of patent-right to say whatever she pleased without being believed. Her tongue was then said to be harmless, or to be no scandal.