500 - HISTORY OF OHIO. condition. They therefore, in deliberate council, decided to return to the banks of the Ohio, hoping to replenish their exhausted stores by the capture of more boats. Chick-a-tom-mo therefore sought an interview with M. Duchonquet, and very tranquilly told him that, since the scalp of their prisoner could be more easily transported than his person, they had decided to burn him that evening; but that from their love for M. Duchonquet, if he would pay a large ransom for the captive, they would forego their anticipated entertainment, and surrender him. This was not an empty threat. They undoubtedly intended to execute it. Still the cunning chief probably thought that a very large ransom would be more valuable to them than the pleasure of witnessing his dying agonies and possessing his scalp. Duchonquet eagerly accepted the offer. He counted out six hundred ornamental jewels called brooches, which the Indians valued as a fashionable lady values diamonds, and offered them for the captive. He was immediately surrendered to the French trader. And these strange savages actually took a very affectionate leave of the captive whom they had been so eager to torture and to burn. Johnston was greatly elated. But the next day his anxieties were renewed. He was in the heart of the Indian country, entirely at the mercy of Indian caprice. There was no power whatever to protect him. The Indian band under Chick-a-tom-mo, which had set out for the Ohio, suddenly reappeared. For some unexplained reason they seem to have abandoned their trip, and for several days they remained loitering around Sandusky. Apprehensive that they might again claim him, he armed himself with a pistol and knife, resolving not to be taken alive. His fears, however, proved groundless. After a few days they again disappeared, and he saw them no more. The very evening of their departure a Delaware Indian came into the village. He brought the intelligence that Flinn had been burned at the stake in one of the Shawanese towns a few days before. He had assisted in the entertainment of torturing the victim, and seemed to take pleasure in reciting all the cruel details. For some time Flinn had cherished the hope that he might be adopted, and there was ground for the hope, for the tribe was much pleased with his bold, frank, and fearless character. But HISTORY OF OHIO - 501 some wild chiefs, reported cannibals, came from far back in the interior on a visit to the Shawanese. They were very eager to share in the amusement of torturing and burning a white captain. As a measure of hospitality the Shawanese consented. The unhappy man was fastened to a stake, and the awful for ture commenced amidst the wildest scene of tumult, whoops and yells. Men, women and children all took an excited part. It was with them the grandest of gala days. The chain which bound him to the stake was about a yard in length, allowing him in his agony to move that distance to and fro. He exhibited the most extra-- ordinary fortitude. Not a groan did he allow to 'escape him. For several hours the awful scene was protracted, the savage tor--: mentors being careful not to touch any vital point. At length a brawny savage with the blow of a tomahawk ended his sufferings.. This report was soon after fully confirmed by a Canadian trader, who was present at the time and witnessed the awful spectacle. He made almost frantic endeavors to save the captive. He offered several kegs of rum as a ransom. He offered six hundred silver. brooches. All was in vain. As he reported to Flinn his utter failure, the poor man exclaimed : " Then all I have to say is, may God have mercy on my soul." The Delaware said that the cannibals ate a portion of Flinn's flesh ; that he tasted of it and it was sweeter than bear's meat. A few days after this Johnston received tidings from poor Skyles. He was taken to one of the towns on the Maumee near the scene of Flinn's execution. It will be remembered that he was in the. hands of a crabbed master who seemed to take pleasure in tormenting him. Skyles was first subjected to the cruel ordeal of running the gauntlet. A stout Indian boy cut a heavy switch from. a thorn tree, and trimmed it so as to leave near the end one sharp, thorn about an inch and a-half in length. As Skyles rushed along, between the hostile lines, the boy struck a blow which drove the thorn up to the head in his naked back. The switch was wrested from the boy's grasp, and carried to the end of the course clinging to the quivering nerves of the sufferer. After this Skyles was employed as the menial slave of his crab-- bed master. He carried water and gathered wood for his scolding, wife. Gradually he so worked himself into her good graces that. she compelled her churlish husband to treat him with less cruelty. One evening the squaw came into the wigwam and confidentially 502 - HISTORY OF OHIO. informed Skyles that his death had been decided upon, and that it was to take place by burning at the stake the next day. He feigned to receive the tidings with indifference, and assumed to fall asleep. The conversation he overheard between the woman and her daughter, a child of fifteen, satisfied him that her report was correct. The squaw said that Skyles was a good man and very useful, and that it was too bad that he should be thus sacrificed. But the girl was merciless. She declared that the white people were all devils, and that every one of them ought to be put to death. And she expressed eagerly the delight she should experience in witnessing Skyles' dying agonies. At length they ceased talking, and both fell soundly asleep. -Skyles cautiously arose, took the old Indian's rifle, powder-horn, shot-bag and corn-pouch, and, stepping out, directed his course, through a solitary way, to the Maumee River. In his excitement, he without delay plunged in and swam to the opposite shore. His powder thus became wet and his rifle consequently useless. He threw them away. The night was dark. He was in a state of extreme agitation. He was flying not merely from death, but from death in its most appalling form. It was far better to be torn to pieces by wild beasts, or to freeze in a wintry storm, or to perish by lingering starvation, than to grapple with the king of terrors at the Indians' burning-stake. He knew that before the dawn more than a hundred fleet-footed warriors would be in pursuit of him, and that, with almost miraculous accuracy they would follow his trail. On and on he rushed, aiming for the Ohio River, and, supposing he had placed miles between him and his pursuers, when he ,came again upon the Scioto, not more than a hundred yards from the spot where he had crossed the stream. In his bewilderment, he had been running in a circle, which had occupied him six hours. It was a terrible discovery. As he stood a moment, almost paralyzed with consternation, he heard the tinkling of a horse-bell near by. A horse was grazing in the rich grass of the meadow. He caught the horse, mounted it, and again commenced his flight towards the river, though he was aware that the horse's tracks would prove an unerring guide to his pursuers. But the forest was very dense; there was much fallen timber ; it became often necessary for him to change his course ; he had no means of ascertaining the points of the compass. Again he be- HISTORY OF OHIO - 505 came bewildered and lost. He also found that he could press through the tangled forest on foot faster than he could on horseback. He abandoned his horse and again set out on foot. At length the day began to dawn. He was in the midst of a vast wilderness, hungry and exhausted. He had no means of obtaining food, and was entirely unacquainted with those signs by which an experienced woodsman could grope his way through pathless wilds. Fearful of pursuit, and knowing that he was in the midst of a dense Indian population, who were ever roving the woods in search of game, he deemed it prudent to find some hiding-place, where he could conceal himself until darkness again came. At night he recommenced his journey, though with the utmost caution. He had not gone far before he came upon a solitary Indian wigwam, probably the encampment of some family out upon a hunting expedition. The inmates were all asleep. But the wolfish dogs of the Indians, ever on the alert, caught sound of his footsteps and commenced a furious barking. Scarcely had he escaped from this danger ere he came upon a larger encampment, composing quite a village. The dogs again commenced their furious barking, and he feared that his detection was inevitable. Thus he wandered in terror and peril for several days. At last he was in a condition of actual starvation. He therefore came. to the desperate resolve to enter the first Indian village he approached, and throw himself upon the hospitality of the people. So soon as he struck a trail, he followed it resolutely. About four o'clock in the afternoon he came upon an Indian village. His heart misgave him. He decided to conceal himself until dark. He thought that he might perhaps then find some cornfield or some refuse food by which he could save himself from starvation. But no food could be found. He came across some embers of a decaying fire, and blacked his face and hands with the charcoal. He then, wrapping his blanket around him, in the usual Indian fashion, and imitating the straggling gait of an Indian hunter, entered the village. It was early in the evening, the lanes of the village were quite deserted, most of the warriors, as he afterwards, learned, being absent. He passed one or two squaws, who paid no attention to him. He was literally starving, and food he must. have. While slowly trudging through the village, he saw a light 506 - HISTORY OF OHIO. in a distant wigwam, which somewhat resembled a trader's booth. Cautiously approaching, he found, to his great joy, that he was correct in his supposition. A white man stood behind the counter, selling various articles to a number of squaws who were standing around. Skyles tremblingly entered the shop, and, in bad English, assuming to be an Indian, called for rum. The trader, who instantly detected him to be a white man in disguise, without manifesting any surprise, replied that he had no rum in the wigwam, but that if he would wait a few minutes he would go and get some. The man leaped over the counter and went out. Skyles followed him and recounted his story, casting himself upon his mercy. The trader was greatly troubled. To betray his guest would be infamous. To assist in concealing an escaping prisoner, would expose him to the same dreadful doom which awaited the captive. And under the circumstances it seemed impossible that Skyles could elude pursuit. The trader informed the starving, trembling prisoner, that a band of Shawanese, that very morning had appeared in the village, in eager search for him ; they were still in the neighborhood, having followed his trail ; that they had expressed themselves as amused by his zig-zag course, and that they would undoubtedly return the next day. If Skyles should remain in the village his detection would be certain. If he endeavored to escape by again entering the forest; it was hardly possible that he could elude the vigilance of the many bands who were on the chase. They were both in a state of very great perplexity. The trader, upon reflection, told him that he must immediately leave the village ; that eager eyes would soon be fixed upon him. He pointed. out a thick hazel grove, where he thought he might perhaps be concealed, in security, for a short time. He promised soon to join him there with some food, and that they would then endeavor to plan some mode of escape. Skyles, by a circuitous route, repaired to the thicket. The trader soon joined him there with food, and informed him, that he saw but one possible mode of escape. " You can not," said he, "remain here without being caught. And you can not escape your pursuers so as to reach the white settlements through the wood. But this morning, a boat, laden with furs, and commanded by an English captain, left here to paddle down the Maumee to HISTORY OF OHIO - 507 Lake Erie. You can possibly overtake that boat. The captain will certainly take you on board, and you may escape." Fortunately the warriors were all absent. Skyles was an experienced boatman. The trader had a light skiff with two oars. Skyles immediately jumped on board, soon reached the current, and rapidly descended the stream. The darkness of night enveloped the scene. There was but little danger of discovery before the day should dawn. Skyles plied his utmost energies, at the oars, during the long hours of the night. More than his life depended upon his speed. The peril of his situation was so dreadful that he was in the greatest agitation. Every rustling of the bushes alarmed him. Every cry of the owl caused him to start. At length, just as the first dawning of the morning was beginning to appear, he caught sight of the boat, the ark of his salvation, drifting slowly down the stream by the force of the current alone. He was soon within hailing distance and called aloud for the boat to stop. But strangely enough the crew were all soundly asleep, even the helmsman. The barge was flat-bottomed, spacious and capable of bearing a heavy burden. Skyles rowed along-side and leaped on board. The drowsing helmsman rubbed his eyes, and looking around, somewhat bewildered said, " I had almost fallen asleep." The captain was called. He emerged from a sort of cabin, with a woolen night cap upon his head, and rather nervously inquired who the stranger was, and why he had paid them so early a visit. Skyles was afraid, at first, fully to reveal himself, lest the captain should deem it too hazardous to afford him refuge. The Indians regarded the English as their allies against the Americans. It would be deemed, by them, an unpardonable offense for an Englishman to rescue an American prisoner. Skyles told the captain that he was a land speculator; that he had been surveying lands upon the Auglaise ; but alarmed by the increasing animosity of the Indians against the whites he had thought it prudent to leave the country. The captain cooly rejoined, as though it was a matter of very little moment : I heard that a white man was burned a few days ago in one of the Maumee villages, and that another had avoided the same fate only by running into the woods. But it is supposed that he cannot escape. He will either perish miserably of starvation in the woods, or be retaken. Numerous parties are after him, and 508 - HISTORY OF OHIO. by his zig-zag .course he has proved himself to be a very poor woodman." After a moment's pause.. Skyles replied : " Captain, I am that wretched fugitive, and I cast myself upon your mercy for protection." The English captain was a very singular man, of imperturbable spirit. He manifested not the slightest emotion of sympathy or of alarm, and without any hesitation received the fugitive to the protection of his boat. They descended the Maumee to Lake Erie without any adventure, and reached Detroit in safety. Here, greatly to his surprise, he discovered, without being discovered himself, Chickatommo, Messhawa, and their accompanying band. These Indians, after having sold Johnston, instead of returning to the Ohio as was their first intention, repaired to Detroit. Skyles very carefully avoided them, and concealed himself in the house of a trader. The next day a party of Shawanese arrived in pursuit of him. They had with their usual sagacity traced him to the river, and down the river to the lake. For several days they paraded the streets, complaining bitterly of the loss of their prisoner. At length, to Skyles' great relief, they departed. He then took passage to Montreal, and after all his perils and sufferings reached his home in safety. It will be remembered that there was one young lady, Miss Flemming, who was taken captive, and who, in the division, was surrendered to the Cherokees. She was a peculiar girl, who had lived a wild life, and was naturally of very buoyant spirits. She did not at first lay her captivity at all to heart. While her captors lingered on the banks of the Ohio, she tried to ingratiate herself into their favor by fun and frolic. Soon after Johnston's liberation, while he was still residing with his friend, M. Duchonquet, at Sandusky, the band of Cherokees, with their prisoner, suddenly appeared in the village. All their booty had disappeared. They were ragged and emaciate, and in all respects in a forlorn condition. Poor Miss Flemming was sadly changed. All her lightness of heart had vanished. Her eyes were swollen with weeping her dress was tattered, and her cheeks pallid and sunken. Johnston's sympathies were deeply aroused. He addressed her tenderly, and inquired into the treatment she had received, which had caused so great a change. She could make no reply, but HISTORY OF OHIO - 509 wringing her hands, wept convulsively. She had been assigned to a particular master. He, seeing her tears, brutally ordered her to leave the village, and accompany him to Lower Sandusky. Her master carried his victim off with him, and all knew that her ultimate fate was to furnish the Cherokees with a gala day. by being tortured and burned at the stake. Johnston and Duchonquet followed, hoping in some way to effect her liberation. There were a few French and English traders at the trading post, and Lower Sandusky was thronged with Indians from the various tribes. Here Johnston first heard the glad tidings of the escape of Skyles. The traders all took a great interest in the fate of Miss Flemming, and united their energies to do everything in their power for her liberation. The Cherokees had pitched their camp a little outside of the village. There was at that place a white man named Whittaker, who had been adopted by the Indians. He had been taken captive years before, when a child, in Virginia. All his friends were killed. He had lost all recollection of his parentage, and had become so thoroughly naturalized among the Indians that he had no desire to leave them. The tradesmen secured his interest in behalf of Miss Flemming, and taking him with them, went in a body to the Cherokee camp. Miss Flemming's father had formerly kept a sort of tavern and trading-house near Pittsburgh, which was much frequented by Indian hunters. Whittaker, accompanying his Indian friends, had often visited the tavern. Thus he had seen Miss Flemming in her own home. This naturally increased his desire to befriend her. As soon as Miss Flemming saw Whittaker she recognized him, and rushing forward, seized his hand, and bursting into tears implored him to save her from the dreadful fate of death by torture which she knew was impending. With his whole heart he engaged in her service; but the Cherokees were inflexible; they would listen to none of his appeals. He then took a boat and went to Detroit to seek the intervention of an influential and powerful Indian chief who went by the name of King Crane, and who was his personal friend. To interest the king more deeply in his behalf, he assured him that Miss Flemming was his sister. With characteristic Indian gravity, the king listened to his story, and acknowledged the reasonableness of his interfering to rescue so near a relative from the stake. He 31 510 - HISTORY OF OHIO. at once repaired to Sandusky, and walked out to the Cherokee camp to plead for the captive. The pride of the Indians was now aroused, and they declared that nothing whatever should induce them to give her up. Very bitter altercations, with many angry threats, ensued. One of the Cherokee chiefs in his rage said to King Crane : " It is disgraceful for a chief like you to place yourself on a level with the white people, and plead for them, when you know they regard you as no better than dirt." This insult exasperated the king. Hurling back volleys of vituperation he drew off to concert with his followers measures of redress. Whittaker successfully added fuel to his towering passion, and encouraged the king in his resolve to rescue the white girl. The Cherokees heard these threats, and in their alarm resolved immediately to put their victim to death. As soon as night came they stripped her of her clothing, painted her body black, bound her firmly to the stake, and gathered the faggots around her, and left her to the misery of the night, intending with the early dawn to enjoy their cruel revel. The sagacious King Crane anticipated this movement. He armed a band of his most determined young men, and at midnight commenced a silent march upon the Cherokee encampment. The Cherokees were asleep. The poor captive was found in her condition of unutterable woe. She was moaning in a state of almost utter insensibility. Speedily they clothed her, and surrounded her with their protecting arms. Then the king, with a whoop, summoned the Cherokee chiefs before him, he informed them that he had rescued the white girl; that she was now his by the right of conquest ; that if they disputed it, and wished to fight, his young men were ready for them. The Cherokees were outnumbered, and dared not provoke a conflict. They saw that remonstrances would be of no avail. They, however, urged that he had the day before offered to pay a large ransom for her; and they hoped that he would now fulfil that offer. He had made the proposal, acting in cooperation with the traders, who had offered to pay six hundred silver brooches for her release. The king replied, with much dignity : " The white girl is now in my possession. I should serve you right if I should refuse you a single brooch. But I disdain to HISTORY OF OHIO - 511 receive anything at your hands without paying an ample equivalent. I will therefore give you the six hundred brooches." This arrangement was eminently wise. The savage nature of the Cherokees was so aroused by their humiliation and their loss, that there was great danger that some lurking Indian would take revenge by piercing her bosom with a bullet before she could be removed. Having accepted the ransom, Indian honor was pledged to respect the arrangement. Still, among the Indians as among white men, there were vagabond individuals who had no sense of honor whatever. Miss Flemming was therefore disguised as an Indian squaw, and was placed under the care of two trusty Indians to be conveyed to Pittsburgh, where she arrived in safety. Still the Cherokees were in a very discontented state. They had been robbed of one of their greatest entertainments. They knew that they had been compelled to accept a ransom. They declared that they would not leave Sandusky until they had killed some white man in revenge for the loss of their prisoner. Every white man there was now in equal peril. Johnston and Duchonquet in particular found it necessary to keep themselves carefully concealed for several days. After a short time the Cherokees retired, vowing vengeance upon the white men wherever they should meet one. They were seen no more. Johnston soon left Lower Sandusky, and embarked in a boat laden with furs for Detroit. Here he remained a few days, and then took passage for Montreal. Thence by the way of Fort Stanwix he reached New York. There he had an interview with President Washington, who in .some way had heard of his perils, his adventures, and his wonderful escape. Washington sent for him and made minute inquiries respecting the strength of the Indian tribes, the number and position of the British garrisons, and the character of the alliance which existed between them and the savages. In a week from this time Johnston was again restored to the bosom of his family. He appeared among them as one risen from the dead. Subsequently the fate of the prominent Indians to whom we have alluded became known. Chickatommo was killed at the renowned battle of the Thames, where General Wayne gained so decisive a victory over the combined Indian hosts. Messhawa was in the same battle, but escaped unharmed. He fought bravely at Tippecanoe and at the River Raisin, and finally disappeared 512 - HISTORY OF OHIO. at the battle of the Thames, where it is supposed that he was killed. King Crane lived to a good old age, much respected for his just and manly character. He was an active warrior in the great victory which the Indians obtained over the whites at the defeat of St. Clair, and shared in the rout which General Wayne subsequently inflicted upon the Indian warriors. After this he became reconciled to the Americans, and fought under the banners of General Harrison at the battle of the Thames. Whittaker remained devoted to the Indians by whom he had. been adopted. Received among them almost in infancy, he was in character, manners, and almost in aspect, thoroughly an Indian. He fought ever on their side. Escaping all the perils of battle,. he died, it is not known when or where. Tom Lewis, a full-blooded Indian with an English name, who, i1 will be remembered, had humanely interposed to save Johnston from being robbed of his shirt in the cold and freezing wind, fought against the Americans in all the battles of the Northwestern Territory until the final peace in the year 1796. He then was sent as one of the Indian deputation to Washington. There he met his former captive Johnston again, in the year 1797. He rose to high rank among his tribe, and finally perished, as many eminent Americans have done, of intemperance, that bane alike of the white man and the red man, CHAPTER XXVII. ORGANIZATION OF THE STATE. POPULATION OF THE NORTHWESTERN TERRITORY IN 1796 - SETTLEMENT AT CHILLICOTHE - FORMING OF WAYNE COUNTY - ORGANIZATION OF ROSS COUNTY, AND OF ADAMS- JOHN BRICKELL - FIRST ELECTION FOR THE TERRITORIAL LEGISLATURE- THE RATTLESNAKE FIGHT - DIVISION OF THE NORTHWESTERN TERRITORY OHIO A STATE - NEW COUNTIES-FRONTIER DEMOCRACY- MCMAHON'S EXPEDITION-EMBASSY OF COLONEL HILLMAN - ONONDAGA - CAPTAIN PETERS-COUNCIL AT WARREN. THE EMIGRANTS to Southern Ohio, from the New England and Middle States, usually traveled in their wagons, until they struck the Ohio at Wheeling. They then took boats, and floated down the river, several hundred miles, to Maysville, Kentucky, or to other points near, where they made preparations to cross the river, and to proceed to their final places of residence. In the year 1796, the whole white population of the Northwestern Territory, was estimated at five thousand souls. These were generally scattered along the banks of the Muskingum, the Scioto and the Miami, and their tributaries, within fifty miles of the Ohio River. Cincinnati contained then one hundred log cabins, about a dozen frame houses, and six hundred inhabitants. Brick had not yet been introduced. The chimneys were built of stone taken from the hills in the rear of the town. As stone was more easily obtained than lumber, it soon became quite commonly used in building. Colonel Nathaniel Massie, an enterprising man from Virginia, had been very efficient in colonizing the military district of that State. During the year 1795, he had secured large bodies of excellent lands, west of the Scioto, upon the branches of Paint Creek, and soon erected a station at the mouth of the creek. A. 516 - HISTORY OF OHIO. vigorous colony commenced operations there. The settlement was called "Station Prairie," and was about three miles below the present City of Chillicothe. The colony was well provided with horses, stock, poultry and all needed farming utensils. Stable cabins were erected, and during the first season thirty plows were employed in turning up three hundred acres of fertile prairie land. Three miles above these rich farming fields there was an elevated, alluvial plain, which presented peculiar attractions for a large town. This was carefully surveyed and laid off into two hundred and eighty-seven town lots, with one hundred and sixty-nine out lots. The wide streets, alternating with lanes, intersected each other at right angles. As an attraction to emigrants, a town lot and a house lot were given to each of the first one hundred settlers. Those who came afterwards were to purchase their lands, but at a very low rate. For a choice town lot ten dollars; were to be paid. " The town sprung up," writes John W. Monette, " as it were, by magic. Before the close of the year it contained, besides private residences, several stores, taverns and mechanical shops. The arts of pioneer life began to multiply, and to give competence in the midst of the wilderness. Emigrants constantly arrived. The population, trade and enterprise of the place continued to increase under the liberal policy of its enterprising founder. The town was called Chillicothe, a term which in the Indian dialect signifies town. It was the first town west of the mountains which was built in peace and quietude, and not requiring the protection of stockades and forts against Indian hostility." Emigrants rapidly advanced throughout the whole Valley of the Scioto, and also ascended the Muskingum to Zanesville. We have already alluded to the settlement of Cleveland, on the lands of the Connecticut Reserve. Though the town was situated on a beautiful, alluvial, well-wooded plain, about eighty feet above the waters of the lake, and was well adapted for commercial pur- poses, yet the place attained no importance until the year 1806. It then became the county seat of Cuyahoga County. In the original survey the town was divided into two hundred and twenty lots, intersected by seven streets and four lanes. The northwestern military posts which had been evacuated by the British were held by United States troops. The settlements HISTORY OF OHIO - 517 on the Detroit River and the Maumee were annexed to the jurisdiction of the Northwestern Territory, and were incorporated in a county called Wayne. Detroit was the seat of justice. Two full regiments garrisoned these forts until the year 1798. Five counties comprised the. whole territory not actually in possession of the Indians. In the year 1790 there were more than fifty log cabins at Chillicothe, and several small settlements were scattered along the river for twenty miles below. Forty miles above, there were three or four log cabins at Franklin, opposite the present City of Columbus. The whole surrounding region presented a gloomy wilderness of dense forests and marshy prairies. There were a few hunters to be found here, and a few vagabond whites living with the Indians, having renounced civilization and adopted barbarism. But the flood of emigration was such, that in two years after this time the cabin of a settler could be found every ten or twelve miles along all the principal routes and Indian trails. New counties began to be organized, and hundreds of small settlements were springing up in all directions. The pomp and pageantry of cruel war had abandoned Cincinnati. For eight years it had been the center of all military parades. The thrilling music of the drum and fife was continually heard in the streets. The sonorous peals of the bugle, blending with the roar of the morning and evening gun, reverberated along the hills which fringed the magnificent stream. But now the deserted fort was crumbling to decay. It was no longer the rendezvous of troops destined to hostile campaigns and to the frontier posts. Cincinnati began to assume the appearance of a peaceful, thrifty and happy agricultural and commercial town. The strongest tide of emigration flowed into the Scioto country. This valley was far-famed for its fertility, its salubrity, its splendidly wooded bottoms, and its level plains, inviting the plow. The governor organized a new county, called Ross, of which Chillicothe was the seat of justice. This county contained large regions of wilderness which had then never been even explored. There were then but three cabins between Chillicothe and Lancaster, on the Hockhocking River. The region of Lancaster had belonged to the Wyandots. They had, in addition to other towns, a pleasant little village here of a 518 - HISTORY OF OHIO. hundred bark wigwams, containing a population of about five hundred. The whole tribe could bring five hundred warriors into the field. By the treaty of Greenville the Wyandots surrendered their whole territory to the United States. Most of the tribe, under their chief, moved to the Upper Sandusky. A few remained behind for four or five years, expressing a great unwillingness to tear themselves away from the graves of their fathers and from their ancient hunting grounds. They were very peaceable and friendly, so that no one desired their removal. Still they were never willing to engage vigorously in agricultural work ; and as the game disappeared, they gradually rejoined their friends in the wilds of the Upper Sandusky. The enterprising Ebenezer Zane had a road cut, for a distance of about two hundred miles, from the Ohio River, opposite Wheeling, to a point on the river opposite Maysville, which, as we have mentioned, was then called Limestone. This road, called Zane's Truce, rough as it was, became a celebrated route for the wagons of the emigrants. They forded the Hocking River near the present site of Lancaster. The first settler, in this upper Hocking Valley was Captain Joseph Hunter. It is difficult to conceive what motive could induce a man to separate himself from all the advantages of neighborhood, and to bury his family in such awful solitudes. When Captain Hunter felled the trees, and cleared away the underbrush, and built his log hut, on the banks of this lonely stream, there was not a cabin on the east of him nearer than the Muskingum River, or on the west nearer than the Scioto. He is regarded as the father of the now populous County of Fairfield. He lived to see the country around him quite densely settled. Lancaster was laid out by Mr. Zane, in the year 1800. It was named from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as many of the emigrants came from that place. The town lots were sold from five to fifty dollars each. Most of the first settlers were mechanics. Their intelligence and energy wrought wonder:,. The town soon assumed a very thriving appearance. They sustained the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which lies at the foundation of all real prosperity. It is said that shortly after the settlement of the place, several emigrants came and made purchases there, who were of different character from the first proprietors. They had occasionally their HISTORY OF OHIO - 519 drinking frolics, which would often terminate in disgraceful brawls There were then no established tribunals of law and justice. The better disposed of the settlers determined to put a stop to such riotous proceedings. They met in a general gathering, and passed a resolution that any person of the town found intoxicated should for every such offense dig a stump out of the streets, or suffer personal chastisement at the whipping-post. It was no easy task to uproot one of these gigantic stumps, firmly imbedded in the soil. But it was better to perform that labor than to endure the keen pain of the lash upon the bare back. The law proved a very effective preventive of intemperance. A few stumps were cleared away, when dram drinking ceased, and the inhabitants of Lancaster became a peculiarly sober and happy people. The majority of the emigrants into the Valley of the Scioto were from Virginia. Their settlements rapidly extended upon all the fine lands within twenty miles of Chillicothe. Adams County was organized from the eastern portion of Hamilton. Manchester became its seat of justice. In the Autumn of 1798, four surveyors set out to explore the wilderness far up the Scioto River. Lord Dunmore, with his army, had penetrated this region more than twenty years before, and had brought back the report that lands of very rare excellence were to be found there. Each surveyor had a rifle, a good horse, which he rode, and a pack-horse, which he led, laden with supplies and ammunition. They advanced through Zane's Truce, traversing league after league of the sublime forest without encountering any sign of inhabitants. At Zanesville they found two or three shanties, where several white hunters were encamped, men almost as rude and uncouth as the Indians. Near by there were several wigwams of the savages, who were also employed in hunting, fishing, and especially in drinking the whisky which they obtained from itinerant traders. Where Columbus, the capital of the state, now stands, they found but a dense, silent forest. About a mile above, upon the river bank, there was a collection of three or four log cabins, without chinking or daubing, and having a blanket in the doorway instead of a wooden door. They found here the wigwam of a white man by the name of John Brickell. When a child he had been taken captive by the Indians. At the treaty of Greenville he was nominally surrendered, but he had become so much attached to his Indian friends that he refuse) to leave them. 520 - HISTORY OF OHIO. Nothing could induce him to abandon the freedom of barbarian life for the restraints of civilization. This year two men, James Ross and Basil Wells, having purchased a large tract of land in the northern portion of Jefferson County, laid out a town on the western banks of the Ohio, about twenty miles above Wheeling. They named the place Steubenville, in honor of Baron Steuben, who had nobly volunteered his services in the cause of American independence. The town was admirably located on an elevated and fertile plain, surrounded by beautiful scenery. FIRST HOTEL AT ZANESVILLE. As, by the census taken at this time, the population of the territory amounted to five thousand free white males, the people were entitled, by the ordinance of 1787, to what was called the second grade of territorial government. Governor St. Clair accordingly issued a proclamation, ordering an election to be held in the several counties on the third Monday of the following December, to HISTORY OF OHIO - 521 elect twenty representatives, to serve as a Lower House of the Territorial Legislature. In reference to this measure, Mr. Monette very justly writes : "Those elected to compose this Legislature were such as are not excelled in point of talent by the members of any legislative body in the United States, even at this late day. Among the pioneers; of Ohio were men of the first order of talent and of finished education, improved and polished by much intercourse with the most refined population of the Atlantic States. Hamilton County. sent a strong representation. Of these, William McMillan was a, native of Virginia, a man of strong and commanding talent, and a finished scholar. " John Smith was a man of strong mind, native talent and great energy of character. His laudable ambition and rectitude of purpose placed him above many of the talented leaders of his day, Jacob Burnett, another representative from Hamilton, was a prominent member of the territorial government, and continued to fill responsible offices under the state government for many years. "Solomon Sibley, of Detroit, representative from Wayne County, possessed a sound mind, improved by a liberal education, and a„ stability of character which commanded general respect and made him rank as one of the most talented men in the House. " Return J. Meigs and Paul Fearing, both lawyers of Marietta,, and representatives of Washington County, were men of talent and great worth. Nathaniel Massie and Joseph Darlington, representatives of Adams County, were among the earliest and most enterprising citizens of Ohio. Ross County sent a representation not excelled by any county in the territory for intelligence and and talent. Worthington, Tiffin, Finley and Langham were qualified to exert an influence in any deliberative body." The representatives to this Territorial Legislature met at Cincinnati the first Monday of February, 1799, and nominated ten men to the President of the United States, to serve as a legislative council. The first regular session of the Legislature was opened at Cincinnati on the sixteenth of September, and continued its, sitting for nearly three months. It is said that the address of the governor was remarkable for its polished diction. Captain William H. Harrison, subsequently President of the United States, was elected the first delegate to Congress. To prevent large bodies of fine land from falling into the hands 522 - HISTORY OF OHIO. of speculators, who would check emigration by greatly advancing the price, Congress devised a mode of survey and sale by which the public lands should be laid off in small tracts, and be held open for sale to any individual. In the year 1800 Trumbull County was organized from lands belonging to the Western Reserve, and an immense population flowed into it from Pennsylvania. At the commencement of this year there were but sixteen settlers in that region, but the number very rapidly increased. The following story is told respecting one of the adventures of these pioneers : " A Mr. Oviatt was informed that a considerable number of huge rattlesnakes were scattered over a certain tract of wilderness. The old man asked whether there were a ledge of rocks in the vicinity, and if any springs issued from the ledge. Being answered in the affirmative, he rejoined, ' We will go about the last of May and have some sport.' Accordingly they proceeded through the woods, well armed with cudgels. Arriving at the battle ground, they cautiously ascended the hill step by step in a solid column. Suddenly the enemy gave the alarm, and the men found themselves completely surrounded by hosts of rattlesnakes of enormous size, and a huge squadron of black snakes. No time was lost. At the signal of the rattling of the snakes the action commenced, and hot and furious was the fight. In short, the snakes beat a retreat up the hill, our men cudgeling with all their might. When they arrived at the top of the ledge they found the ground and rocks in places almost covered with snakes retreating into their dens. Afterwards the slain were collected into heaps, and found to amount to four hundred and eighty-six, a good portion of which were larger than a man's leg below the calf, and over five feet in length." Cornelius Feather, who gives the above narrative, adds : " One circumstance I should relate, with regard to snake hunting. Having procured an instrument like a very long chisel, with a handle eight or nine feet long, I proceeded to the ledge alone, placed myself on the body of a butternut tree, lying slanting over abroad crevice in the rocks, seven or eight feet deep, the bottom of which was literally covered with the yellow and black serpents. I held my weapon poised in my right hand ready to give the deadly blow ; my left hand held a small branch to keep my balance, when both my feet slipped, and I came within a hair's HISTORY OF OHIO - 523 breadth of plunging headlong into the den. Nothing but the small limb saved me from a most terrible death, as I could not have gotten out had there been no snakes, the rocks on all sides being nearly perpendicular." In the session of Congress of 1800 the Northwestern Territory was divided into two parts. The eastern portion, which still retained the name of the Northwestern Territory, embraced the region now included in the States of Ohio and Michigan, containing eighty thousand square miles. The ,western, which was called the Indiana Territory, comprised all the country from the great Miami westward to the Mississippi, and from the Ohio River on the south to Lake Superior, and the sources of the Mississippi on the north. It spread over the vast area of one hundred and eighty thousand square miles, embracing the present States of Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Governor St. Clair was very unpopular. His awful defeat by the Indians was never forgotten or forgiven. By the census of i800, the territory over which he presided contained a population of forty-two thousand, a number nearly sufficient to entitle it to admission into the Union as a state. Earnest petitions were sent to Congress to that effect. On the thirtieth of April, 1802, an act of Congress was passed authorizing the call of a convention to form a state constitution for a state to be called Ohio. The convention assembled at Chillicothe on the first of November, and on the loth of the same month a constitution was ratified, and signed by the members of the convention. It became the fundamental law of the state, by the act of the convention alone, not being referred to the votes of the people. This constitution was remarkably democratic. The right of suffrage was conferred on all the male white inhabitants of the state above twenty-one years of age. The members of the House of Representatives were to number not less than seventy-two nor more than seventy-six, and were to be elected annually, apportioned among the counties according to their number of votes. The Senate was to consist in number of not less than one-third, nor more than one-half, of the members in the lower house, and were to be elected for two years. The governor chosen by the people for two years, was not to hold office more than six years out of eight. He was intrusted with but very little power. He could grant reprieves and pardons, could convene the Legislature, and 524 - HISTORY OF OHIO. could fill vacancies in state offices when the houses were not in session. The judicial power was vested in the Supreme Court, Courts of Common Pleas and in Justices of the Peace. The judges were elected by joint ballot of both houses, for the period of seven years. The justices of the peace were elected by the townships for three years. Though St. Clair was a candidate for governor, he received but few votes. The almost unanimous choice fell on Edward Tiffin. The boundaries of the state were laid down as now recognized. By act of Congress, the sixteenth section in each township was set apart for the use of schools. Where that section had been disposed of, other and equivalent lands were granted. Thirty-eight sections of land, where salt springs had been found, were always to belong to the state, never to be sold. One-twentieth of the proceeds of public lands sold within the state were to be appropriated to the construction of roads. One of the first acts of the State Legislature was to organize seven new counties. There were now fifteen counties in the state. Many of them were large and very sparsely settled. At this time nearly all the northwestern part, including nearly one-half of the state, was in the possession of the Indians. In some of the new counties many rude and very savage people were gathered. Green County embraced a good farming region on the Little Miami River. We have fortunately a perfectly correct picture of the first court-house erected in that county. Then it was almost an entire wilderness, the primeval forest waving gloomily, yet, sublimely, all around. A few log cabins were scattered about, miles apart, amidst the giant trees of the forest. Each cabin had its little patch of corn, thickly dotted over with girdled trees, whose leafless and dead branches presented a very cheerless view. Many of the cabins were the abodes of contentment; and the most warm-hearted hospitality was ever to be met at their firesides. The path through which the traveler passed from one of these cabins to the other was designated simply by blazed trees that is, trees from which the bark on one side had been hewn off. Strange scenes were sometimes witnessed in these courts. The first court in Green County was held in the log cabin which was also occupied as a residence by Peter Bordus. General Benjamin Whitman was the presiding judge. He had a sturdy neighbor, HISTORY OF OHIO - 525 Owen Davis, not far off, whose cabin and mill combined, were on Beaver Creek. These were the days of pure democracy, and there was truly no respect of person. While the court was in session, Davis charged another man, out of doors, with stealing his swine. A hard fight ensued. Davis severely whipped his opponent. But Davis was a lover of justice, and meant to be a firm supporter of the laws. FIRST COURT HOUSE IN GREEN COUNTY. Bearing many marks, in dishevelled dress and hair, and bruises of the fight, he went into the court room, that is, the cabin, and approaching the table where the judges sat, addressed his neighbor, Judge Benjamin Whitman, saying : " Ben, I have whipped that accursed hog thief. What's the damage? What's to pay? There's my purse. Take what's right." Suiting the action to the word, he threw his purse upon the table, containing eight or ten dollars. At the same time, shaking his clenched fist in the judge's face, he added : " Ben, if you'd steal a hog, I'll be hanged if I wouldn't whip you too." 526 - HISTORY OF OHIO, The judge decided that the damage was about eight dollars,. which he took from the purse. The whole taxable property at this time in the county returned. by the assessors was three hundred ninety-three dollars and four cents. The general aspect of the people was quite uncouth.. Many wore moccasins instead of shoes. Coats, hunting-shirts and pantaloons were made of deer skins. Almost every man appeared armed with a good rifle and a formidable looking knife. There was not, it is said, at that time a single pleasure carriage. or a bridge in the state. In traversing the woods, it was more safe to follow the pocket compass or the sun than to endeavor to search out the narrow bridle-paths marked by blazed trees. Almost every farmer kept a large number of dogs to protect his swine, sheep and poultry from wild beasts. The swine multiplied so rapidly that thousands of them ran wild in the woods. An untoward event occurred in Trumbull County, which, for a. time, threatened to bring on a general Indian war. A Mr. Joseph McMahon was absent from his cabin, near Warren, when a small band of Indians came along, bound on a drunken spree. A chief of some note, called Captain George, was with them. They entered the cabin boisterously, and treated the family with rude ness. Mrs. McMahon was greatly terrified. The Indians threatened to kill all the family—at least Mrs. McMahon so understood their gestures. As soon as the savages had left, she either carried or sent word. to her husband of the outrage. He however did not get the news: Until noon of the next day. McMahon was a fearless, impetuous man, and he resolved to inflict severe chastisement upon the Indians for the outrage. He had a neighbor, one Richard Story, who had severely beaten an Indian for stealing some whisky. The proud Indians could never forget blows received from a white man. The Indian who had been thus beaten was a malignant, ill-favored fellow, called Spotted John. He was so named from having his face all spotted over with hair moles. It was said that he had threatened to kill. Story for the blows which he had received from him. McMahon and Story repaired to Warren to beat up recruits to go with them, and in vengeance to put to death the whole band. It was Sunday morning. They soon raised a strongly armed party of sixteen to go with them to the Indian encamp- HISTORY OF OHIO - 527 ment, there to decide what measures of revenge should be adopted. There was at Warren an excellent man, mild and judicious, by the name of Captain Ephraim Quimby. He was familiarly acquainted with the Indians, for they had often stopped at his house, which was a sort of tavern. His honorable treatment of them had won their confidence and affection. He resolved to accompany the party, hoping, by measures of conciliation, to avert hostilities. When the party had arrived within half a mile of the Indian camp, Mr. Quimby proposed a halt, stating that he would proceed alone to the encampment, ask for an explanation of their conduct, and ascertain whether they were for peace or war. He knew that it was a very hazardous enterprise, as these children of the forest had their whisky bottles with them, and they often acted from momentary impulse. He therefore informed them that if he did not return in half an hour, they might infer that he was killed, and that they must then prepare for war. The half hour passed and he did not return. The impatient McMahon put his little band in rapid motion.. As they emerged from the woods, in view of the encampment, they saw the Indian chief and Captain Quimby talking very earnestly together. Several other Indians were standing peaceably around. Among the rest was Spotted John, with his wife and daughter, a child about thirteen years of age. The whites marched directly up to where the Indians were grouped. The chief, Captain George, was chivalrously proposing that the difficulty should be settled by a sort of duel between him and Mr. Quimby. In his own language, which Captain Quimby understood, he said, as he held his tomahawk in his hand : "We fight. If you kill me, the Indians shall not revenge. If I kill, your people shall not revenge." Mr. McMahon was at the head of his band, within a few feet of the chief. Next to him stood Story. McMahon instantly raised his gun, which was already cocked, and shot the chief dead. At the same moment Story discharged his rifle and shot Spotted John dead, the same bullet passing through his wife's neck and the shoulders of his daughter. The Indians, thus taken by surprise, fled with loud outcries. The whites pursued, firing upon them as rapidly as possible. The women and children, panic-stricken, screamed piteously as they 32 528 - HISTORY OF OHIO. dispersed in all directions. Several of the Indians were killed before the pursuit was relinquished. The party who had committed this foul murder then returned to Warren. The little community of white settlers was thrown into a state of consternation. They knew full well that the Indians would not allow such an outrage to pass unavenged. Those of the Indians who escaped, stopping first to bury their dead, fled as rapidly as possible to Sandusky to rouse the powerful tribes residing there. It so happened that Colonel James Hillman, of Youngstown, the next morning, Monday, came to Warren. He was one of the most enterprising and estimable of the pioneers of the West. He was very extensively acquainted with the Indians, and enjoyed their full confidence. For several years he had been employed in forwarding goods and supplies, on pack-horses, across the whole breadth of Ohio, from Pittsburgh to the mouth of the Cuyahoga, where Cleveland now stands. There they were shipped to Detroit, by a small schooner called the Monongahela. The caravan with which, in single file, he traversed the broad wilderness, consisted of ten men and ninety horses.. Starting from Pittsburgh, they forded the Beaver River about four miles below the mouth of the Shenango. Thence they followed up the left bank of the Mahoning, crossing it three miles above the present village of Youngstown. The trail then led directly west, through uninhabited wilds, where Milton and Ravenna have since sprung up. There was not even a solitary log cabin along this route at that time. They crossed the winding Cuyahoga River near the mouth of Breakneck Creek, and again crossed it at the mouth of Tinker's Creek. They followed down the left bank of the river to its mouth, where they had constructed a log store-house to receive their goods while awaiting shipment. By such journeyings for eight years, Colonel Hillman had become intimately acquainted with many of the Indians. He spoke their language quite fluently. Warren, in Trumbull County, was situated on the Mahoning River. Not far from there there were some salt springs, where a large party of Indians had been encamped for some time making salt. Colonel Hillman, with Mr. Young and Judge Pease, of Warren, immediately set out for the salt springs, hoping to appease the Indians. They knew that they were justly HISTORY OF OHIO - 529 exasperated, and to satisfy them that the whites did not justify the murders, both of the criminals, McMahon and Story, were arrested and held for trial. Upon reaching the springs, not an Indian was to be found. It was not doubted that they had all fled to gather strength for signal vengeance. Great was the panic in the cabins of the whites through all that region. Many packed up their goods preparing to seek refuge in the larger settlements. The little hamlet of Youngstown was but ten or twelve miles east of Warren. Both settlements were about to be abandoned. The leading inhabitants met for consultation, not a little indignant with the culprits who had thus suddenly plunged them into these dreadful perils. During the night Story had escaped from his keeper, John Lane. It was decided that McMahon should be sent to Pittsburgh, to be kept in close imprisonment until he could be tried. Colonel Hillman then advised that a deputation should be sent to a large Indian -Village, on the waters of the upper Mahoning, with endeavors to avert the threatening danger by making some suitable atonement. It was a very hazardous undertaking. It was a part of the Indian religion that the death of one of their brethren must be avenged by the death of a white man, and that in the spirit land he would be made glad in witnessing those tortures which were avenging his death. Any one who should go on this mission would not only be exposed to the peril of being immediately tomahawked, but to the awful doom of being put to death by lingering torments. Heroically, Colonel Hillman volunteered his services. We can hardly conceive of an act of greater heroism. Another man, Mr. Randall, volunteered to accompany him. Though urged to go strongly armed, Colonel Hillman declined taking any weapon of defense whatever. The exigencies of the case were such that not a moment was to be lost. Both of the men mounted their horses, and pressing as rapidly as possible through the paths of the forest, came upon an encampment or Indian warriors just before sunrise. They were seventeen in number and were asleep, each with his gun and powder horn resting upon a forked stick at his head, ready to be grasped at any moment. Hillman was in the advance. As he approached, the tramp of his horse awoke the savages, and instantly every one sprang to his 530 - HISTORY OF OHIO. feet, with gun in hand. Seeing the colonel and his companion riding quietly into their encampment, totally unarmed, they gathered around them. A chief by the name of Onondaga, who knew Colonel Hillman, happened to be among the warriors. Hillman told him frankly the object of his visit. He condemned McMahon entirely, and assured the chief that the culprit was then on his way to Pittsburgh, to be tried for the murders he had committed. He said also that though Story had escaped, every effort would be made to re-arrest him, and bring him to punishment. The chief, Onandaga, seemed greatly agitated, and manifested very deep feeling in view of the murders. He said, however, that nothing could be done until another chief should arrive, who had gone to a distance to summon the braves of the tribe, to confer and decide upon the question; and that he expected their arrival that afternoon. In the course of the day they came, while in the meantime Colonel Hillman and his companion were treated with cold courtesy. The chief who came with the band of warriors was called Captain Peters. He did not know Colonel Hillman; but the moment his eye rested upon two white men in the encampment, his features expressed the most implacable hatred. The colonel immediately sought an interview with the two chiefs, and endeavored by every means in his power to induce them to listen to terms of pacification. But it was evident that his words produced but little effect. He said to them: "We condemn the conduct of these wicked men. We will, if possible, bring them to punishment; and we will, as an atonement for the crime, pay you five hundred dollars if you will bury the hatchet and return to friendly relations with us." " No, no!" was their persistent reply. "We must go to the Sandusky, and hold a council with the chiefs there before we can decide what shall be done." Hillman replied : " Will you hold a council there, light the war-torch, rally all the warriors throughout the forest, and with savage barbarity come and attempt to massacre all your best friends among the whites, in consequence of the crimes of two men, whose crimes they denounce, and whom they will severely punish, and for whose conduct they are anxious to make all the restitution in their power?" HISTORY OF OHIO - 531 The chiefs evidently felt the force of this reasoning. They 'were embarrassed, but shaking their heads, they said: " We can do nothing; we must lay the affair before the council of the chiefs. Within fourteen days some of our number will return and inform you on what terms peace can be restored." With this answer, Colonel Hillman and Mr. Randall returned to Warren. Not knowing what the result might be, in both of the Villages. of Warren and Youngstown they made vigorous preparations for defense, in case they should again encounter the doom of another Indian war. On the day appointed, four or five Indian chiefs, with a suitable retinue, came to Warren. The occasion was one of so much importance that three hundred white people had assembled in the little hamlet, anxious to learn the result. A resident of the county writes : "The chiefs were conducted by Mr. Hillman to the place prepared to hold their council. After the ceremony of smoking, the speeches were commenced. It was generally conceded that the Indian chief, Captain Peters, had the best of the argument. Throughout the whole of the consultation he showed a decided superiority over the whites opposed to him, in adroitness and force •of reasoning, although our people had appointed three of their best men for that purpose, all of whom had prepared themselves for this encounter with Indian shrewdness. " The Indian chiefs demanded that McMahon and Story should be surrendered to them in Sandusky; that they should be tried by the Indian laws, and if found guilty should be punished by them. They were told that this was impossible, since Story had fled from the country, and McMahon was already a prisoner in the jail at Pittsburgh, beyond their jurisdiction, to be tried by the laws of the whites. At length, after long discussion, they came to a result which was accepted by both parties. It was agreed, simply, that McMahon should be brought under a strong guard to Youngstown, there to be tried by the white men in accordance with their laws. And that the Indian chiefs should be permitted to be present, to see that the trial was fairly conducted. The Governor of Ohio ordered a special court for that purpose. Return J. Meigs and Benjamin Ives were the judges. Persons from a great distance attended the court. It was believed that many unprincipled adventurers had come, resolved to 532 - HISTORY OF OHIO. rescue McMahon, should he be found guilty. Many of these men deemed it no greater sin to shoot an Indian than to shoot a wolf. The Indian chief, Captain Peters, sat by the side of the judges. One man testified falsely, as even a majority of the whites believed, that McMahon fired in self-defense that he was retreating. and trying to escape, when he saw that he must either kill or be killed. The jury, probably somewhat over-awed by the menaces of the white men crowding around, accepted this testimony. When the Indian chief heard it he whispered to Judge Meigs that the jury would acquit the prisoner. Under the circumstances, it is very much to the credit of the Indians that they accepted the result, with the admission that the prisoner had been fairly tried by the laws of the white men. Thus was tranquility restored and a horrible warfare averted, which certainly would have resulted in the loss of thousands of dollars and of hundreds of lives, creating and entailing unimaginable misery. And these great results were mainly accomplished through the sagacity and Christian spirit of a single man, Colonel James Hillman. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE CHARACTER OF THE SAVAGES. MR. GOODYEAR'S NARRATIVE- VARIETIES OF CHARACTER-ANECDOTE OF THE INDIANS AND THE IRISHMAN -THE INDIANS JOE AND JACK BILL BURNS, THE DESPERADO - THE INTERVIEW IN THE HOTEL - FIDELITY OF JACK - EFFECTS OF FIRE WATER-LABORS OF THE WOMEN-THE MEDICINE MAN - CAUTION OF THE INDIANS- TERRIBLE FIGHT WITH THE WYANDOTS - THE SURRENDER OF CAPTIVES- AFFECTING ANECDOTE GENEROSITY OF THE WYANDOT INDIAN. IN THIS history I have had constant occasion to refer to the Indians, in their primeval home in the wilderness, to their character, their customs, the wrongs inflicted upon them, and the terrible wars into which they were thus provoked. The Indians are fast passing away, and all the memorials of their transitory life upon this continent will soon disappear. Their memory is fast sinking into oblivion. A friend of mine, William E. Goodyear, Esq., of Fair Haven, Conn., passed eight or ten years of his early manhood in the midst of the tribes occupying the heart of our continent. In kind response to my earnest request he has furnished me with a few pages, describing the scenes he has witnessed in the great Wilderness of the West and of the character and customs of the Indians, whose lodges he has so often visited, and of whose hospitality he has often partaken. Mr. Goodyear writes : " Agreeably to my promise I will give you my ideas of the Indians of twenty years ago, or more, while I was among them, and with whom I spent nearly ten years of my young manhood. The greater part of that time, as I now look upon it, is a source of sadness to me. Many events occurred which I could wish had never transpired; and yet, upon the whole, I cannot but think that I have learned a lesson which but few persons ever have a chance to learn. As I look back upon my many hair-breadth 534 - HISTORY OF OHIO. escapes, and the many sufferings I have endured, I hardly think that any one would be willing to pass through the same experiences for all the knowledge he would thus obtain. The Indians generally consist of as many different kinds of people as are to be found among the whites. They vary in character like all other races of men. Some persons, I have been led to think, consider it impossible for an Indian to laugh, to make fun, and to have a jolly time, as white people do. This is not true. When in their villages they have sports and frolics like other people. I recall an instance which occurred in 1852. A party of Indians caught a white man from an emigrant train. It was called the wheelbarrow train, as they were all men, and each man had a barrow, or a small hand-cart, in which was his entire stock in trade. They were all bound to the new Eldorado. Most of them were Irishmen. As I have said, one of them got separated from the rest, and was captured by a small band of very good-natured Indians. They wanted to have some fun. I chanced to be with those Indians, and was painted and dressed like them. They took the man, barrow and all, and brought him into camp. A very solemn mock council was held. The doom was announced by signs to Pat of death by burning. He was tied to a tree. The dry sticks were piled up around him. The Indians then all collected in a circle around. Not the movement of a muscle of their countenances was perceptible. At the same time we were all nearly dying with internal laughter as we listened to Pat's moans and cries. They were something as follows : " O, holy St. Patrick, 0 Mother of Moses, let me out of this." " By. the Blessed Virgin, Mr. Injine, if you Jet me out of this, be jabbers you will not catch me again. O, is it yourself, Pat, that has come across the mountains, among the bloody hathen, to be murdered, to be burned to death, to be scalped. 0, plase, Mr. Injine, let me out." At a nod from one of the Indians, I approached him and said to him in English, " You have been caught on our hunting-grounds, but if you will promise that you will clear out immediately, I will cut your thongs and let you go." Never before did I see such an expression as came upon the countenance of poor Pat. " Come to my arms," he cried out, HISTORY OF OHIO - 537 " By the pipers that played before Moses you are a jintleman. May the blessing of St. Patrick rest upon you. And its myself that can go now. May the Holy Mother bless you. Hold your tar here a bit. Are you an Injine ? I nodded my head with a whoop, hurrah, and away he went as if all the fiends were after him. All the Indians broke out into a laugh, and it seemed as though some of them would go into convulsions as they rolled upon the ground in uncontrolled merriment. Thus you see that Indians can enjoy fun and frolic as well as white men. It is also said by some writers that the Indian is treacherous to every one; that he never forms a friendship for the whites ; that he is ever liable, at any moment, to prove false. This is not so. My uncle, who resides in California, had two Indians, Joe, a Piute, and Jack, a Ute. Either of these boys would at any time have died for him. After a while they became attached to me. I recollect that, in the. Summer of 1853, I was surveying in what is called the Montezuma Hills, some seventy-five miles in a northerly direction from Benicia. .Previous to my leaving on my survey, I had heard that a white man, with whom I had previously exchanged a few words of not a very friendly nature, had expressed himself as determined to take revenge for some wrong which he unjustly thought that I had done him. Jack, the Ute Indian, heard him say that he would shoot me at sight, at the same time expressing his determination to .go out to the place where I was surveying to hunt me up. Jack said nothing, but immediately mounting his horse, rode out to find me and warn me of my danger. He at once began to tell me what the man, whose name was Bill Burns, had said. This man was a thorough desperado, and the very worst man I ever knew. The only redeeming traits in his character were reckless courage and a certain kind of veracity, which made you sure that if he threatened to shoot a man he would certainly do it. I must either flee from the country or watch my opportunity and shoot him first, or be shot the moment he caught sight of me, or contrive, in some way, to get access to him so as to explain to him his error. I made up my mind to try to hunt up Burns and, if possible, to undeceive him in regard to what he had heard. It was necessary for me to go prepared instantly to shoot him down if I saw that 538 - HISTORY OF OHIO. he was drawing his pistol upon me. I started at once for Benicia. by a roundabout way. I did not wish to meet him on the road. When I arrived at Benicia he had gone to San Francisco. I immediately followed, having for my companion State Senator Wambeau. Upon arriving we both went to the hotel in front of the plaza. My friend went in and found Burns asleep on a sofa between the bar and the billiard-room. I at once entered, stepped up to his side and awoke him. As he awoke he looked towards me, and saw me bending over him with my bowie-knife in my hand. He was entirely at my mercy. " Do n't kill me," he cried out. I then said, " Burns, if you stir or move a step till I get through, I will kill you like a dog." I was about to explain to him, when he said, " I know all about it. You are not to blame. I should have shot you, however, if I had met you, for had I not done so. you would have killed me." I added, " You are satisfied then ? " " Perfectly," he replied. " Well, then," I rejoined, " good-bye at once and forever. Never speak to me or recognize me. From this time we are strangers. I never harmed you, neither do I wish to." I immediately turned to leave him, and behold my Indian boy Jack stood directly behind me, pistol in hand. He had followed me, coming down in the boat without my knowing it. " What would you have done," said I to Jack, "if Burns had got a shot at me." " I kill him quick," said he. If the Indians were not capable of the strongest attachment, Jack would not have done as he did. At another time I had some trouble with an official of the state, in which I got cut up a little. On Jack's finding it out, in order to prevent him from killing the man, we had to tie his arms and legs with our lariats until the man was beyond his reach. No attachment can be stronger; no truer friend can be found than an Indian whom you have always treated well. But some one may say that this Indian was to a great extent civilized ; he had been among the whites so long that he had learned their ways. But can any man who has the slightest acquaintance with the past history of the Indian believe that he has learned anything good from the white man ? No! a thousand times no. The Indian has been cheated, victimized, robbed in every con- HISTORY OF OHIO - 539 ceivable way. The fire-water of the whites has carried desolation all through their vast- regions. It has been the cause of more murders, more bloodshed, more poverty among the Indians, than all other influences. It has created that disease of the internal organs which is more dreadful than small-pox or cholera. Forty years ago a white man who traded fairly, who always told the truth to the poor Indian, and who did as he agreed to, was safe, comparatively speaking, in any of their lodges. He could go defenseless wherever he would, without fear of harm. If a. white man chanced to be lost, and came upon a tribe suddenly,, even if the tribe had been provoked to hostilities, the Indians. would scorn to take advantage of his misfortune they would feed him. Then, showing him the way of escape, they would chivalrously point to the sun and give him the start of several hours before they would undertake to pursue him as an enemy. Then,, should they overtake him, he would be deemed a lawful captive. But look at the Indians now, after years of acquaintance with the white man, and see how changed; but few are left. They have nearly all fallen beneath the white man's treachery. Whisky and diseases, introduced by the whites, have depopulated their hunting-grounds as never could have been done by force of arms. The diminished and broken tribes, driven from the graves of their fathers, disheartened by their calamities, are slowly becoming exterminated. Still there will be, probably, for a century to come, fragments of these tribes lingering amidst the vast ravines of the Rocky Mountains. The question of their civilization presents a very difficult. problem. Scarcely any consideration can induce the male Indian to engage in any of the employments of useful industry. The women do all the work. If a camp is to be moved, Mr. Indian takes his rifle or his bows and arrows, and starts off ahead.. The squaw takes down the lodge, packs up all the movables,. takes the heavy load upon her shoulders, and trudges along in the footsteps of her husband, who would scorn to relieve her of her burden in the slighest degree. If the Indian goes a hunting, his squaw follows after him to skin the game and to bring into the camp upon her bending back, perhaps, the heavy four quarters of a deer. If the tribe chance to have horses, Mr. Indian mounts instead of going afoot. His squaw, however, saddles and bridles the horse, and brings him 540 - HISTORY OF OHIO. to the door of the lodge. When the Indian returns from any horseback excursion at the close of the day, he jumps from his horse before the lodge, and his wife takes off his soiled moccasins and puts upon his feet a fresh pair. He then enters the lodge, throws himself down upon his soft couch of fur robes; while his wife takes care of the horse and serves to him his supper. Such is life among the Indians. As a general thing the Indians have great regard for their chiefs, who rule them with an iron hand. I was acquainted with an old chief at Los Angelos, who was almost fiend-like in his tyranny and cruelty. He was almost a ,giant in stature, being nearly seven feet high, and possessed of herculean strength. He was perfectly fearless, and all the Indians stood in awe of him. A conspiracy was formed for his deposition. They had a great carousal, and got him helplessly drunk. Then they seized and bound him hand and foot, so that he could scarcely move a muscle. Then they heated some needles red hot and pricked both his eyes until vision was entirely extinguished. They then released him, as utterly helpless and powerless as a new born babe. He wandered to Los Angelos, where he got a living by begging. Here I often saw him. He got so that he knew my voice, and, seemed to love to have me talk to him. I have not the least doubt that, could he have caught in his powerful grasp any one of his tribe, he would instantly have strangled him. But, as I have said, the Indians are generally very loyal to their chiefs. They also regard with profound reverence their medicine men. It is believed that they hold immediate converse with the Great Spirit, and that they have the power of prophecy and of working miracles. They can, the Indian thinks, by a wish destroy their enemies and bring prosperity to their friends. The medicine men spend their time in collecting roots, stones, bones and other things to use in case of sickness, or to make into ,charms to be worn by the braves. These charms, it is supposed, will save them from the arrows or bullets of their enemies. They are always dressed in the most fantastic garb. Their faces are literally covered with streaks of paint. They howl and twist themselves into the most hideous contortions. But the untutored Indians regard every thing that is strange or wonderful, or that they have never seen before, as " Big Medicine." I have often been asked if I have not seen Indians, in my HISTORY OF OHIO - 541 many hostile encounters with them, who would rush upon their foes, headlong as it were, without paying any regard to numbers or position. In other words, are there not Indians so brave and impetuous that they apparently think nothing of their own lives, but rush recklessly into the battle. I answer no! I never saw an Indian yet who did not practice the utmost caution before he would expose any part of his person to be struck by a bullet. I have seen them dodge from tree to tree, eagerly seeking covert behind logs and stones and sand-hills, when in large and overpowering numbers they were endeavoring to surround a small party. But I never have seen a party of Indians make an open charge upon a band of white men who had rifles and ammunition. We were not accustomed to fear any number of them in open battle. It was only necessary to guard against ambush and midnight surprises. I have often been without water and without food. But I never allowed myself to be without ammunition. If the Indians would rush into danger, as the white man will, since they often vastly outnumbered us, we might easily have been overwhelmed, with comparatively small loss to themselves. But in such a charge it was certain that some of them would fall before our unerring rifles. Each warrior thought that he might be of that number. And no one was willing to purchase victory at that price. But when they fought from behind trees and rocks, there was a good chance that none of them might be hit. Thus they might gain the victory without any loss. Inured to every hardship, as the Indians had been from childhood, every muscle being tough as iron, accustomed to the use of the tomahawk and the scalping-knife, dodging almost as swift as the lightning's flash from covert to covert, unencumbered with clothing, and their skin, as a general thing, oiled to prevent any one from retaining a hold upon them, many of them superior to the whites in physical strength; when we consider these things it must be admitted that the Indians were formidable foes to encounter For my own part I should not wish again to take the chances which I have often taken, when our party consisted of but sixty-five men, while the Indians numbered fifteen hundred. On one such occasion we were two hundred miles from Fort Tejon, the nearest place to which we could look for any succor. As I now reflect 542 - HISTORY OF OHIO. upon those days, and think of my old friends, Kit Carson, roe Walker, Aleck Cody, Peg Leg Smith, and hosts of others, around whose camp-fires I have had the pleasure of sitting, and who have often been with me around my own camp-fires, and with some of whom I have month after month penetrated these wilds, all of whom are now dead, excepting perhaps Aleck Cody, I cannot but wish that I could again visit those places, even if there were a few Indians around hunting for one's scalp. Such was the experience of Mr. Goodyear among these natives of the forest and the prairie. The warfare with the savages was very different from the warfare of the present day. There were often the most desperate hand-to-hand fights, the combatants grappling with frenzied energies in the death struggle, where the victory was entirely dependent upon superior agility and strength of muscle. We are indebted, in the main, to that very valuable work, Doddridge's Notes, for the following narrative of one of these most terrible encounters : In the Summer of 1782 seven Wyandot Indians entered the cabin of an aged man residing alone a short distance from Fort Pitt, and some distance back from the Ohio River. They tomahawked the old settler, and, plundering the cabin of everything they wished, took their departure. The circumstance soon became known, and a small party was organized to go in pursuit of the savages. Among the men were two brothers, Adam and Andrew Poe, who were both famed for their size and courage. The party determined, if possible, to capture or destroy these Indians. They traveled all night, and in the morning came upon the trail. This led down to the Ohio River. Andrew Poe, fearing an ambuscade, crept cautiously along the bank, hiding among the reeds and bushes, intending to fall upon the rear of the Indians. Soon he discovered some rafts near the shore. With his gun cocked he stole along the edge of the bank, and espied two Indians of the Wyandot tribe ; one a man of herculean frame, a chief, the other rather diminutive in size. They were but a few feet from him, but were earnestly looking in the opposite direction, their attention being arrested by the discovery of some white men farther along on the bank. Adam Poe aimed at the giant and fired, but his gun flashed in the pan. The click of the gun-lock caught the ear of the savage and he instantly turned. Poe, being unarmed and too near to HISTORY OF OHIO - 543 retreat, sprang down the bank and clutched the chief with one hand, holding him by a cloth fastened around his breast. The smaller one he seized around the neck, and then threw them both on the ground, being himself uppermost. The smaller one escaped from his grasp, and seizing a tomahawk aimed a blow at the head of his assailant. The chief, unable to rise, held Poe fast. But his feet, which were at liberty, he used vigorously, knocking the tomahawk from the hand of the savage, and, for the moment, disabling him. But, recovering himself, the Indian caught up his weapon and approached Poe very cautiously, aiming again at his head. He, however, averted the blow, taking it upon his wrist. The blow was severe, but he did not by it lose the use of his hand. By a violent effort he freed himself from the grasp of the Indian. Seizing a gun he shot the smaller Indian through the breast. Instantly he was again in the brawny arms of the chief, and was thrown upon the ground. Rising to his feet he was again grappled, and the shore being slippery, both fell into the water. Each endeavored to drown the other. Poe, seizing the scalp-lock of the savage, held him under water until he presumed him to be dead. But to his consternation, on releasing his hold, Poe found his antagonist ready for another fight. In the deadly struggle which ensued they were both swept by the current into water beyond their depth. This compelled them to lose their hold of each other. The contest then was to see who could first gain the shore by swimming, and then seize a gun and shoot his antagonist. The Indian proved the best swimmer and grasped a rifle. Fortunately it was one which had just been discharged. Poe immediately turned back, swimming out into the stream, hoping to dodge the bullet by diving. Just then Andrew Poe came up. His gun had also just been discharged. The burly savage and the white man faced each other at the distance of but a few yards. The question of life or death depended upon who could most quickly load his gun. The Indian, in his eagerness, drew the ramrod from its thimbles with such violence that it slipped from his fingers and fell to the ground. This gave Adam Poe the advantage of two or three seconds. He shot the Indian through the heart, and the savage rolled down the steep and slippery bank into the river, to be swept by the current to some unknown grave. As Andrew Poe 544 - HISTORY OF OHIO. was struggling towards the shore, one of his own party caught sight of him, and mistaking him for an Indian, shot at him, inflicting a serious but not fatal wound in the shoulder. While these bloody scenes were transpiring, their comrades attacked the remaining six Indians and killed five of them. Thus ended this desperate conflict. All of the Indian party but one were slain. The white men lost three killed and one severely wounded. The gigantic Indian, of whom we have spoken, was one of the most renowned chiefs of the Wyandot nation. He was one of the bravest and most magnanimous of Indian warriors. He appears to have been a man of high moral principle, was noted for his kindness to all the captives taken by his tribe. He would never allow a prisoner to be ill-treated or killed. Mr. Hutchins has given a very graphic account of the surrender of the Indians upon the banks of the Muskingum, of two hundred and six prisoners, men, women and children, early in the period of the Indian wars : " Language indeed can but weakly describe the scene, one to which the poet or painter might have repaired, to enrich the highest colorings of the variety of the human passions ; the philosopher, to find ample subject for the most serious reflection; and the man to exercise all the tender and sympathetic feelings of the soul. There were to be seen fathers and mothers recognizing and clasping their once lost babes ; husbands hanging round the necks of their newly recovered wives; sisters and brothers unexpectedly meeting together after a long separation, scarcely able to speak the same language, or for some time to be sure they were the children of the same parents. In all these interviews joy and rapture inexpressible were seen, while feelings of a very different nature were painted in the looks of others, flying from place to place, in eager inquiries after relatives not found, trembling to receive an answer to questions, distracted with doubts, hopes and fears on obtaining no account of those they sought for, or stiffened into living monuments of woe and horror on learning their unhappy fate. " The Indians, too, as if wholly forgetting their usual savageness, bore a capital part in heightening this most affecting scene. They delivered up their beloved captives with the utmost reluctance—shed tears over them—recommending them to the care and protection of the commanding officer. Theirregard for them HISTORY OF OHIO - 547 continued all the while they remained in the camp. They visited them from day to day, brought them what corn, skins, horses, and other matters had been bestowed upon them while in their families, accompanied with other presents, and all the marks of the most sincere and tender affection. Nay, they didn't stop here, but when the army marched, some of the Indians solicited and obtained permission to accompany their former captives to Fort Pitt, and employed themselves in hunting and bringing. provisions for them on the way. A young Mingo carried this still further, and gave an instance of love which would make a figure even in romance. A young woman of Virginia was among the captives, to whom he had formed so strong an attachment as to call her his wife. Against all the remonstrances of the imminent danger to which he exposed himself by approaching the frontier, he persisted in following her at the risk of being killed by the surviving relatives of many unfortunate persons who had been taken captive, or scalped by those of his nation. "Among the captives a woman was brought into camp at Muskingum, with a babe about three months old. One of the Virginia volunteers soon knew her to be his wife. She had been taken by the Indians about six months before. He flew with her to his tent, and clothed her and his child with proper apparel. But their joy, after the first transports, was dampened by the reflection that another dear child about two years old, taken with the mother, had been separated from her and was still missing, although many children had been brought in. "A few days afterwards a number of other persons were brought in, among whom were several children. The woman was sent for and one supposed to be her's was produced. At first sight she was not certain, but viewing the child with great earnestness, she: soon recollected its features, and was so overcome with joy that,. forgetting her nursing babe, she dropped it from her arms, and. catching up the new-found child, in ecstacy pressed it to her breast: and, bursting into tears, carried it off, unable to speak for joy.. The father, rising up with the babe which she had let fall, followed. her in no less transport and affection. "But it must not be denied that there were some, even grown persons, who showed an unwillingness to return. The Shawanese were obliged to bind some of their prisoners and force them along to the camp ; and some women who had been deliv- 33 548 - HISTORY OF OHIO. ered up, afterwards found means to escape, clung to their savage acquaintances at parting; and continued many days in bitter lamentations, even refusing sustenance." J. W. Van Cleve, of Dayton, says that he was with a surveying party above the site of Columbus, in the year 1797. The party were nearly starved, having been reduced to three scanty meals in four days. In this condition they chanced to come upon the camp of a single Wyandot Indian with his family. The hospitable savage immediately gave them all the provisions he had, which consisted only of two rabbits and a small piece of venison ; and still the father of this Wyandot had been murdered by vagabond white men in time of peace. CHAPTER XXIX. BLENNERHASSETT. BIRTH AND EDUCATION OF HARMON BLENNERHASSETT - HIS EMIGRATION TO THE UNITED STATES- HIS HOME ON BLENNERHASSETT'S ISLAND-ITS BUILDINGS, FURNITURE AND APPOINTMENTS- MR. BLENNERHASSETT'S TRUE GENEROSITY -APPEARANCE AND CHARACTER OF MRS. BLENNERHASSETT - HER DRESS, MANNERS, ACCOMPLISHMENTS, AND HABITS-MIRTHFUL SCENES ON THE OHIO-DIFFICULTY OF TRAVEL IN OHIO IN 1796 - PROGRESS AT BELPRE AARON BURR AND HIS TREASONABLE SCHEMES HE VISITS BLENNERHASSETT'S ISLAND HE UNFOLDS PART OF HIS PLANS AND ENGAGES WITH MR. BLENNERHASSETT IN A LAND SPECULATION-HIS ENERGY AT MARIETTA. HARMON BLENNERHASSETT was born of a noble family, in Hampshire, England, in the year 1767. The residence of the wealthy family was at Castle Conway, in the County of Kerry, Ireland. His parents were on a visit to England when this son was born. Harmon received a very thorough academic education at the Westminster School in England, where he manifested unusual taste for all classical studies. On leaving school he entered Trinity College, Dublin, where in due time he graduated with distinguished honors. A brilliant career seemed then opening before him. He was in the enjoyment of rank, wealth, and intellectual powers of a high order, richly cultivated. His personal appearance was unusually attractive and his manners prepossessing and winning. Young Blennerhassett read law at the King's Inn Courts, in Dublin, and was admitted to the bar in 1790. He, then, with a well filled purse, and in all the vigor and enthusiasm of youth, undertook the tour of Europe. Upon his return, he nominally assumed practice at the bar in Ireland. But being heir to a large fortune, he was by no means solicitous of engaging