USA > Illinois > Cook County > Chicago > Discovery and conquests of the Northwest, with the history of Chicago, Vol. II > Part 24
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The slave interest was now at bay. Heroic meas- ures were necessary to circumvent the abolition senti- ment which had assumed such formidable proportions, backed by solid men in the north. To do this they held a nominating convention at Richmond, Va., and
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chose John C. Breckenridge on a defiant slavery issue as candidate for president of the United States. They themselves now became the advocates of dissolution of the Union, as they despaired of protecting slavery under it. Chicago was the place where the plan for this evolution in favor of freedom was improvised, and here the machinery was set in motion wherewith to execute these plans. Abraham Lincoln was the instru- ment on whom its responsibilities devolved. His statesmanship, though terminating in a tragic death,
ZEBINA EASTMAN.
crowned the cause of freedom with a halo of glory, and the American nation with strength.
*Hon. Zebina Eastman, during his long and eventful career, made up a scrap book containing the principal incidents of the great conflict between slavery and freedom. This scrap book is now in possession of his son, Sidney C. Eastman, which he kindly loaned to the writer to assist him in making up the foregoing history.
OLD MACKINAW IN 1818.
TAKEN FROM THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF GURDON S. HUBBARD.
On this island lived old voyagers, worn out with the hard service incident to their calling, with their families of half-breeds.
A few only of the inhabitants engaged in trade. Mrs. Mitchell, an energetic, enterprising woman, the wife of Dr. Mitchell, a surgeon of the English army, and stationed at Drummond's island, had a store and small farm. Michael Dousman, Edward Biddle and John Drew were also merchants, all depending on trad- ing with the Indians.
These merchants, to a very great extent, were under the influence of the American Fur Co., purchas- ing most of their goods from them, and selling to them their furs and peltries. This island was the headquar- ters of the American Fur Co., and here I first learned something of the working and discipline of that mam- moth corporation, and took my first lessons in the life of an Indian trader, a life which I followed exclusively for ten consecutive years. Here, also, was located Fort Mackinaw, at that time garrisoned by three or four companies of United States troops. The village had a population of about 500, mostly of Canadian French and of mixed Indian blood, whose chief occu- pation was fishing in summer and hunting in winter. There were not more than twelve white women on the island, the residue of the female population being either all or part Indian. Here, during the summer months, congregated the traders employed by the fur company,
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
bringing their collections from their several trading posts, which extended from the British dominions on the north and the Missouri river in the west, south and east to the white, settlements, in fact to all the Indian hunting grounds, so that when all were collected they added 3,000 or more to the population.
The Indians from the shores of the upper lakes, who made this island a place of resort, numbered from 2,000 to 3,000 more. (Their wigwams lined the entire beach, two or three rows deep, and, with the tents of the traders, made the island a scene of life and animation). The voyageurs were fond of fun and frolic, and the Indians indulged in their love of liquor, and, by the exhibition of their war, medicine and other dances and sports, often made both night and day hideous with their yells. These voyageurs were all Canadian French, and were the only people fitted for the life they were compelled to endure, their cheerful temperament and happy disposition making them con- tented under the privations and hardships incident to their calling.
At the time of our arrival all the traders from the north and the great west had reached the island with their returns of furs collected from the Indians during the previous winter, which were being counted and ap- praised, and the profit or loss of each "outfit" ascer- tained.
All of the different outfits were received into a large warehouse, where they were assorted into various classes or grades, carefully counted, packed and pressed for shipment to New York to John Jacob Astor, the president of the company.
Mr. Matthews had the general management of the fur warehouse, and on arrival assumed the charge. After a few days I was ordered to report to him, and then commenced my first instructions in the fur trade.
It was my business to make a second count in or- der to verify the first. The first count was entered on
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
a book not seen by me, and if mine corresponded with it, the furs were placed in a frame, pressed, marked and rolled into the shipping wareroom. If, however, my count did not agree with the first, I was required to make a second count; and if there was still a discrepancy, a third person was called upon to recount them. This work took about two months, the working hours being from five o'clock in the morning to twelve noon, and from one to seven in the afternoon; and, as I was obliged to maintain a stooping posture, was severely fatiguing.
About 100 voyageurs were detailed to assist in this business, and were kept under strict discipline. Most of them were experienced, and were generally con- tented and happy, each working with a will, knowing that Mackinaw fatigue duty came but once in four years, and that if they lived through the succeeding three years, their time at headquarters could be spent in comparative ease and comfort.
A party was also organized to cut wood on Bois Blanc, and bring it in boats to the island for the use of the agents and employes who remained there; this party consisted of about twenty-five picked choppers, under the charge of one of the clerks detailed for that purpose. Another party was employed in lyeing (hull- ing) corn, and drying and putting up for the use of those remaining on the island, and for supylying the various outfits soon to leave for their trading posts.
The daily ration issued by the commissary to a mess of from six to ten men consisted of one pint of lyed or hulled and dried corn, with from two to four ounces of tallow, to each man; and this was all the food they received, except that on Saturday flour was given them for Sunday pancakes. It would seem that this was a very short and light ration for healthy, hard working men, but it was quite sufficient, and generally more than they could consume. It was invariably liked by them, and it was found that they could endure
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more hardships on this than on a diet of bread and meat.
Those who came from Canada, their first season, and who were called mange-du-lard, or "pork-eaters," were usually much dissatisfied and angered with this ration, as on the voyage up they were fed on pork, pease and hard bread, and the change was anything but agreeable to them. They were, however, soon laughed out of it by the old voyageurs, who told them that many of them would be thankful for even that be- fore they returned from their winter quarters.
The company had a yard in which were made and repaired their own boats, and where were manufact- ured traps, tomahawks and other articles from iron. Other parties of the men were detailed to assist the mechanics in this work.
Most of the clerks were assigned to duty either in charge of the different gangs of men or in the wholesale and retail stores and offices. From these duties the heads of outfits were exempt.
The force of the company, when all were assembled on the island, comprised about 400 clerks and traders, together with some 2,000 voyageurs. About 500 of these were quartered in barracks, 100 lived in the agency house, and the others were camped in tents and accommodated in rooms of the islanders.
Dances and parties were given every night by the residents of the island in honor of the traders, and they, in their turn, reciprocated with balls and jollifica- tions, which, though not as elegant and costly as those of the present day, were sufficiently so to drain from the participants all the hard earnings of the winter previous.
In each " brigade," or outfit, was to be found one who, from superior strength or bravery, was looked upon as the "bully" of that crew of voyageurs, and who, as a distinguishing mark, wore a black feather in his cap.
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
These "bullies" were generally good fighters, and were always governed by the rules of fair play. It was a rule, and was expected, that they should fight each other; hence it was not an uncommon thing to see a fight. The vanquished one gave up his black feather to the conqueror, or shook hands with him, and they both joined with the lookers on in a glass of beer or whisky as good-naturedly as though nothing unpleasant had occurred.
The majority of the inhabitants of the island were of mixed blood-Canadian and Indian-and those who were of pure blood, and were heads of families, had In- dian wives. Their children, though uneducated, were unusually bright and intelligent, and fond of finery, dancing and other amusements. There were a few of the half-breeds who had received a common education, either in English or French, which was generally of little use to them, as they were mostly too lazy or too proud to earn a livelihood.
Among the Indian or part Indian women who were or had been married to white husbands were found some of great intellectual capacity, who carried on an extensive trade with the Indians, one of whom was the Mrs. Mitchell before referred to; she had a store and a farm, both under excellent management, and her chil- dren had been well educated in Canada. This woman's husband was a Scotchman and a surgeon in the English army, and while the island of Mackinaw was in posses- sion of England he was stationed there ;* removing after- ward to Drummond's island, he rarely visited his fam- ily, though only fifty miles distant. He was a man of strong prejudices, hated the "Yankees," and would hold no social intercourse with them.
Mrs. Mitchell was quite the reverse, and being rather partial to the "Yankees," treated them with great consideration; she was a fine housekeeper, and
*After the treaty of Paris of 1783 which closed the war of the American Revolution, the British kept possession of Mackinaw Island till 1796, at which time they evacuated the island.
.
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
owned one of the best houses on the island; she was fond of good society, very hospitable, and entertained handsomely, conversing in French and English, both of which she spoke fluently.
Another of these women was Mrs. Lafromboise, who also traded with the Indians in the interior, usually up the Grand river of Michigan; her daughter was highly educated, and married the commanding officer at Fort Mackinaw.
Mrs. Lafromboise could read and write, and was a perfect lady in her manners and conversation; she was a widow, her husband, who was a trader, having been shot and killed by an Indian on the Mississippi river; she took his place and business and accumulated con- siderable money. She was afterward employed on a salary by the American Fur Co.
Mrs. Chandler, a sister of Mrs. Lafromboise, was also noted for her ladylike manners and many Christian virtues. Her husband was an invalid and her daughter a widow. This daughter was also highly educated and was considered the belle of Mackinaw; she afterward married Mr. Beard, a lawyer of Green Bay, Wis.
It was my good fortune to be received into these excellent families as a welcome visitor, and they all took an interest in me and my welfare, calling me their " boy clerk." My leisure evenings were passed with them, much to my pleasure and advantage. From them I received much good advice, as well as instruc- tion in the method of conducting trade with the In- dians, which was of much benefit to me in my after life as a trader.
It was also my good fortune to form the acquaint- ance of Mr. Deschamps, who was an old man and the head of the "Illinois outfit."
Mr. Deschamps had been educated at Quebec for a Roman Catholic priest, but, refusing to be ordained, he, at the age of nineteen, engaged himself to Mr. Sara, a fur trader at St. Louis, and had devoted many
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years of his life to the Indian trade on the Ohio and Illinois rivers. When the American Fur Co. was organ- ized he was engaged by them and placed in charge of the " Illinois brigade," or outfit.
It was the policy of the American Fur Co. to mo- nopolize the entire fur trade of the northwest; and to this end they engaged fully nineteen-twentieths of all the traders of that territory, and with their immense capital and influence succeeded in breaking up the bus- iness of any trader who refused to enter their service.
Very soon after reaching Mackinaw and making returns, the traders commenced organizing their crews and preparing their outfits for their return to winter quarters at their various trading posts, those destined for the extreme north being the first to receive atten- tion. These outfits were called " brigades."
The " brigade" destined for the Lake of the Woods, having the longest journey to make, was the first to de- part. They were transported in boats called "ba- teaux," which very much resembled the boats now used by fishermen on the great lakes, except that they were larger, and were each manned by a crew of five men besides a clerk. Four of the men rowed while the fifth steered. Each boat carried about three tons of mer- chandise, together with the clothing of the men and rations of corn and tallow. No shelter was provided for the voyageurs, and their luggage was confined to twenty pounds in weight, carried in a bag provided for that purpose.
The commander of the " brigade" took for his own use the best boat, and with him an extra man, who acted in the capacity of "orderly" to the expedition, and the will of the commander was the only law known.
The clerks were furnished with salt pork, a bag of flour, tea and coffee, and a tent for shelter, and messed with the commander and orderly.
A vast multitude assembled at the harbor to wit- ness their departure, and when all was ready the boats
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
glided from the shore, the crews singing some favorite boat song, while the multitude shouted their farewells and wishes for a successful trip and a safe return; and thus outfit after outfit started on its way for Lake Su- perior, upper and lower Mississippi, and numerous other posts.
The "Wabash and Illinois river outfits" were al- most the last, and were speedily followed by the smaller ones for the shores of Lakes Huron and Michigan, and which consisted of but from one to three boats.
I was detailed to the Fond-du-Lac (Lake Superior) " brigade," and a week or so before its departure was relieved from duty at the fur warehouse.
About this time I received a letter from my father, written at Erie, Pa., in which he informed me that he and my brother were there on their way to St. Louis, and that they had waited there a week looking for the fur company's vessel, which it was expected would touch there on her way from Buffalo to Mackinaw, upon which they hoped to obtain passage, and thus visit me, and if they found no way of proceeding to St. Louis from there, they would return on the vessel to Erie; but fearing she had passed, and being uncertain whether they should find me on the island, they had reluctantly concluded to continue their journey by way of Cincinnati. .
I had before this been told by Mr. Deschamps that he made a trip every fall to St. Louis, with one boat, to purchase supplies of tobacco and other neces- saries for distribution among the various traders on the Illinois river; and as he had seemed fond of me, and possessed my confidence, I went immediately to him with my letter, thinking to advise with him, and, per- haps, to send by him an answer to my father. After hearing my story, he delighted me by saying: "Would you like to go with me, if it can be so arranged?" to which I answered affirmatively, and begged for his in- fluence and efforts to that end.
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
A Mr. Warner, a fellow-clerk from Montreal, had already been detailed to accompany Mr. Deschamps' "brigade."
"Now," said Mr. Deschamps, "if you can get Mr. Warner to consent to an exchange, I think I can get Mr. Crooks' permission; I can see no objection to it, and as I am the party mostly interested, I think it can be arranged with him; you must first, however, obtain Mr. Warner's consent, and then I will see what I can do."
So off I started, letter in hand, to see Warner, not daring to hope for success; but to my surprise I found he preferred going north to south, and would gladly make the change. I reported to Mr. Deschamps, and he, seeing my anxiety, took my letter and went im- mediately to Mr. Crooks, who gave his consent, and with it an order to the bookkeeper to change the names in the details; you may feel certain that I felt much re- joiced at my good fortune. Thus my desire of finding my father in St. Louis was the probable cause of an en- tire change in my destiny, for, instead of being located in the cold regions of the north, where my friend War- ner froze to death that winter, my lot was cast in this beautiful state.
During my stay at Mackinaw I had made the ac- quaintance of John H. Kinzie, a clerk of about my own age, and our acquaintance had ripened into an inti- macy. He had entered the service of the company that spring, and was stationed permanently at Mackinaw, and was not to be sent into the Indian country. His father then resided at Chicago, and I had learned of the great hospitality of the family, and of the high es- teem felt for them by all who knew them; and as I had also been told that we should make a stop of a week or more at Chicago, there to make our arrangements for crossing our boats and goods to the Desplaines river, I gladly accepted letters of introduction which he kindly proffered me, to his father and family.
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Old Mackinaw in 1818.
Through my intimacy with John, I had become quite familiar with the appearance of the Kinzie family and their surroundings. I knew that Fort Dearborn was located at Chicago, then a frontier post; that it was garrisoned by two companies of soldiers, and that on my arrival there I should for the first time in my life see prairie; and I felt that my new detail was to take me among those who would be my friends, and was happy in the thought.
FIRST YEAR IN THE INDIAN COUNTRY - MARQUETTE CROSS-CHICAGO-FORT DEARBORN.
-
The time of our departure soon arrived, and about noon on the 10th of September, 1818, our " brigade" left the harbor in twelve boats.
Mr. Deschamps took me in his boat, and led the way, with his fine, strong voice starting the boat song, in which all the crews heartily joined.
The people on the shore bid us a "God speed" and joined with us in the hope for our safe return the next season.
The islanders, more than any one else, regretted our departure, as what few of the traders remained would go in a few days and leave them to the monot- ony of their own sorroundings, even the Indians hav- ing mostly departed for their hunting grounds.
Some of our boats were crowded with the families of the traders, the oldest of whom was Mr. Bieson, a large, portly, gray-headed man, who was then about sixty years of age, and for more than forty years had been an Indian trader on the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois rivers. His wife was a pure-blooded Potta- wattomie Indian, enormous in size-so fleshy she could scarcely walk. Their two daughters were married and lived at Cahokie, a small French town opposite St. Louis. Mr. Bieson had a house and some property at Opa (now Peoria), but had been, with all the inhab- itants of that place, driven off* by the United States
*For account of this attack, see Volume I of this work, page 423.
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troops, under command of General Howard, in the year 1813, and a fort was there erected, which was called Fort Clark. The town of Opa and Fort Clark were situated at the foot of Lake Peoria, on the Illinois river, where now stands the flourishing city of Peoria.
The inhabitants of Opa were suspected (wrongly, I think) by our government of being enemies, and of aid- ing and counseling the Indians in giving assistance to Great Britain, and this was the cause of General How- ard's action in compelling them to vacate. Un- doubtedly some of them favored the British, and were paid spies, but a large majority opposed the Indians in siding with the British, and counseled them to act neutrally and attend to their hunting.
Among the others who had with them their fam- ilies were Messrs. Bebeau, of Opa, and Lefrombois, Bleau and La Clare, all of whom had Indian wives; and, in fact, there were but three or four single men in the party. Those having families messed by them- selves, while the single men clubbed together. Mr. Deschamps was fond of good living, and our mess of five was well provided for, having such meats, fish and wild fruits as were presented to us by the Indians when we met them on the shore of Lake Michigan.
It was the custom of the Indians to present the head man of an expedition with the best they had, ex- pecting to receive in return salt, powder or something else of value to them. The choice parts were retained by Mr. Deschamps for his own table, and the balance distributed among the traders.
The traders were all provided with small tents, but the only shelter given to the men was what was af- forded by the boat tarpaulins, and, indeed, no other was needed, the camp fires being sufficient for warmth during the night. No covering but their single blan- ket was required, unless the weather was stormy.
The boats progressed at the rate of about forty miles per day under oars, and when the wind was fair
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we hoisted our square sails, by the aid of which we were enabled to make seventy or seventy-five miles per day. If the wind proved too heavy, or blew strong ahead, we sought an entrance into the first creek or river we came to, and there awaited a favorable time to proceed. If caught by a storm on the coast, when a shelter could not be reached, we sought the shore, where our boats were unloaded and hauled up on to the beach out of reach of the surf. This was a hard and fatiguing labor, and was accomplished by laying down poles on the sand from the edge of the water. The men then waded into the water on each side of the boat, and by lifting and pushing as each large wave rolled against it, finally succeeded in landing it high and dry on the shore. The goods were then piled up, resting on poles, and covered over with the tarpaulins, which were raised to the leeward by poles, so as to form a good shelter for the men and protect them from wind and rain. Sometimes we were compelled to remain thus in camp for four or five days at a time, waiting for the storm to subside, and during this time many games were indulged in, such as racing, wrestling and card playing, and all were jolly and contented; sometimes varying the monotony by hunting or fishing.
Our journey around Lake Michigan was rather a long one, having occupied about twenty days. Nothing of interest transpired until we reached Marquette river, about where the town of Ludington now stands. This was the spot where Father Marquette died, about 140 years before, and we saw the remains of a red cedar cross, erected by his men at the time of his death to mark his grave; and though his remains had been re- moved to the mission at Point St. Ignace, the cross was held sacred by the voyageurs, who, in passing, paid rev- erence to it by kneeling and making the sign of the cross. It was about three feet above the ground, and in a falling condition. We re-set it, leaving it out of the ground about two feet, and as I never saw it after,
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I doubt not that it was covered by the drifting sands of the following winter, and that no white man ever saw it afterward.
We proceeded on our voyage, and on the evening of September 30, 1818, reached the mouth of the Calumet river, then known as the "Little Calumet," where we met a party of Indians returning to their villages from a visit to Chicago. They were very drunk, and before midnight commenced a fight in which several of their number were killed. Owing to this disturbance we re- moved our camp to the opposite side of the river and spent the remainder of the night in dressing ourselves and preparing for our advent into Chicago.
We started at dawn. The morning was calm and bright, and we, in our holiday attire, with flags flying, completed the last twelve miles of our lake voyage. Ar- riving at Douglas grove, where the prairie could be seen through the oak woods, I landed, and, climbing a tree, gazed in admiration on the first prairie I had ever seen. The waving grass, intermingling with a rich profu- sion of wild flowers, was the most beautiful sight I had ever gazed upon. In the distance the grove of Blue island loomed up, beyond it the timber on the Desplaines river, while to give animation to the scene, a herd of wild deer appeared, and a pair of red foxes emerged from the grass within gunshot of me.
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