USA > Kentucky > The history of Kentucky : from its earliest settlement to the present time > Part 7
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An hour before, while they were yet uncon- scious of the actual presence of Indians, the sus- picions of the son had been aroused by the cry of owls hooting to each other in the adjoining wood in a rather unusual manner; and by the
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INDIAN ATTACKS.
terror and excitement of the horses, who were en- closed, as customary, in a pound near the house.
Several times the young man was on the point of awaking his brother, but as often refrained through fear of being ridiculed for his timidity. At length hasty steps were heard without, and then came several sharp knocks at the door, ac- companied by the usual question of the wayfarer, " Who keeps house ?" spoken in good English.
The young man hastily advanced to withdraw the bar which secured the door, supposing the new comer to be some benighted settler; when his mother, whose greater experience had proba- bly detected the Indian accent, instantly sprang out of bed, and warned her son that the men outside were savages.
The other son being by this time aroused, the two young men, seizing their rifles, which were always charged, prepared to repel the enemy. Conscious that their true character was discover- ed, the Indians now strove to break in the door ; but a single shot from a loophole compelled them to shift their point of attack; and unfortu- nately they then discovered the door of the other cabin which contained the three daughters.
By some oversight in the construction of the cabin, none of the loops enabled the brothers to cover the door of the room in which their sisters were, and the Indians were able to force it open by means of rails taken from the yard fence.
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
The girls being thus placed at the mercy of the savages, one was instantly secured; but the eldest defended herself desperately with a knife, and succeeded in mortally wounding a savage before she was tomahawked. The youngest girl darted out into the yard, and might have escaped in the darkness; but the poor creature ran round the house, and, wringing her hands in terror, kept crying out that her sisters were killed.
The brothers, agonized almost to madness by her cries, were preparing to sally out to her as- sistance, when their mother stayed them, and calmly declared that the child must be abandoned to her fate. The next instant, the child uttered a loud scream, followed by a few faint moans, and then all was silent.
Almost immediately afterwards, that portion of the house which had been occupied by the daughters was set on fire, and the flames soon communicating to the opposite room, the brothers were compelled to fling open the door and at- tempt to seek safety by flight.
The old lady, supported by her eldest son, sought to cross the fence at one point, while the widowed daughter, with her child in her arms, and attended by the younger of the brothers, ran in a different direction. The blazing roof shed a light over the yard but little inferior to that of day, and the savages were distinctly seen awaiting the approach of their victims. The old
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FEARFUL MASSACRE.
lady was permitted to reach the stile unmolested, but in the act of crossing, received several balls in her breast and fell dead. Her son providen- tially remained unhurt, and by extraordinary agility effected his escape. The other brother, being vigorously assailed by the Indians, defended his sister desperately for some time, and drew the attention of the savages so closely to him- self, that she succeeded in eluding their vigilance. The brave and devoted young man was less fortu- nate; he fell beneath repeated blows from the tomahawks of his enemies, and was found at daylight, scalped and mangled in a most shock- ing manner.
Of the whole family, consisting of eight per- sons when the attack commenced, only three escaped. Four were killed on the spot, and one, the second daughter, carried off prisoner.
The alarm was soon given, and by daylight thirty men were assembled under Colonel Ed- wards, and pursued the Indian trail at a gallop, tracking the footsteps of the savages in the snow. The trail led directly into the mountainous coun- try bordering upon Licking, and afforded evi- dences of great hurry and precipitation on the part of the Indians. Unfortunately, a hound had been permitted to accompany the whites, and as the trail became fresh, and the scent warm, she pursued it with eagerness, baying loudly and giv- ing alarm to the savages. The consequence of 10%
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
this imprudence was soon displayed. The enemy, finding the pursuit keen, and perceiving the strength of their prisoner beginning to fail, in- stantly sank their tomahawks in her head, and left her, still warm and bleeding, upon the snow. As the whites came up, she retained strength enough to wave her hand in token of recognition, and appeared desirous of giving them some in- formation in regard to the enemy; but her strength was too far gone. Her brother sprang from his horse, and endeavoured to stop the effusion of blood, but in vain. She gave him her hand, muttered some inarticulate words, and expired within two minutes after the arrival of the party.
The pursuit was renewed with additional ardour, and in twenty minutes the enemy was within view. They had taken possession of a narrow ridge, and seemed desirous of magnifying their numbers in the eyes of the whites, by run- ning rapidly from tree to tree, and maintaining a steady yell in their most appalling tones.
The pursuers, however, were too experienced to be deceived by so common an artifice; and being satisfied that the number of the enemy must be inferior to their own, they dismounted, tied their horses, and flanking out in such a man- ner as to enclose the savages, ascended the ridge as rapidly as was consistent with a due regard to the shelter of their persons.
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INDIAN CUNNING.
The firing quickly commenced, and now they discovered, for the first time, that only two In- dians were opposed to them. They had volun- tarily sacrificed themselves for the safety of the main body, and had succeeded in delaying pur- suit until their friends could reach the mountains. One of them was instantly shot dead, and the other was badly wounded, as was evident from the blood upon his blanket, as well as that which filled the snow for a considerable distance. The pursuit was recommenced, and urged keenly until night, when the trail entered a running stream and was lost.
During the latter part of January, 1788, a party of Indians stole some horses on Elkhorn, near Colonel Johnson's mill. They were pur- sued by Captain Herndon and some of his men, but escaped. This escape was effected by means of a most singular manœuvre on the part of one of the Indians. The latter, after travelling about twenty miles, were surprised by their pursuers in a brushy copse of wood. The whites no sooner made preparations to fire on the saváges, than they scattered in various directions. One Indian alone remained. He continued, notwith- standing the presence of his pursuers, to spring from tree to tree, to yell and dodge, and spring aloft, and make all manner of singular noises, like a man perfectly frantic. This strange ex- hibition so engrossed for a time the attention of
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
the attacking party, that they looked on in a sort of bewildered amazement, and hesitated to fire. In the mean time, the other Indians had escaped out of rifle shot ; and the stratagem of the savage having succeeded in effecting its ob- ject, he himself suddenly disappeared, leaving the pursuers to wonder at their own delusion and folly.
In March, the Indians surprised a camp of Kentuckians on the Cumberland road, and killed two of them. Pursuit was immediately urged, but, although the savages were overtaken and fired on, they escaped unhurt.
About this time they adopted a more dangerous, because a more secure mode of warfare. They manned a flat-boat, and having perfected them- selves in its management, laid in ambush on the Ohio for the family boats which were constantly descending that river. They succeeded in cap- turing several, slaughtered the persons on board, and possessed themselves of considerable booty. The people of Kentucky were greatly exaspe- rated by these repeated outrages ; but being dis- tracted by the fierce political feuds which grew out of the Spanish intrigues of Wilkinson and others, they were not able to make the usual re- prisals.
The violent and illegal separation from Vir- ginia which was urged upon the people of Ken- tucky by Wilkinson and his partisans was fraught
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ADVENTURE OF LANCASTER.
with the most momentous consequences. Had they succeeded in carrying out their object, it would have had the effect of precluding the re- cognition of Kentucky by the general government as one of the confederated states, and have forced her to stand upon that independent footing which the emissaries of Spain so ardently desired. Hap- pily, more judicious counsels grew gradually into favour; the Spanish influence declined, and the state, as we have already seen, was formally re- cognised by the general government.
But as yet this fortunate result had not been achieved, and the political condition of the terri- tory continued to be terribly shaken by intestine divisions, which not only interfered with the pros- perity of the settlers, but loosened their attach- ment both to Virginia and the federal compact.
During the month of May, John Lancaster, accompanied by Colonel Joseph Mitchell, his son, and a man named Brown, while descending the Ohio in a flat-boat, discovered a party of Indians lying in wait for them at the mouth of the Miami. As the current bore the boat directly towards the savages, escape was hopeless. The Indians dis- played a white flag in token of friendship, but at the same time levelled their muskets at the man who was at the oar, and would have shot him down had not the chief interposed. The latter, who was known as Shawnese Jim, speaking in broken English, assured the white men that his
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
people meant them no harm, and that they merely wished to trade with them.
Mean time a skiff, manned by four Indians, was seen to put off from the shore, and was rowed rapidly toward the boat, which it struck with so much force as to upset the skiff, and precipitate three of the Indians into the river. Lancaster immediately, with great presence of mind, leaped into the river and aided in rescuing the strug- gling Indians. But the well-intentioned effort to conciliate the good-will of those in whose power he was, met with no immediate return. The In- dians, on entering the boat, seized on the whites and made them prisoners, two of them struggling violently for the possession of Lancaster. When they reached the shore, the opposing claimants fought desperately with each other on the same ground of quarrel, when Captain Jim interposed, and decided in favour of the first who had seized the person of the captive. The boat was soon rowed to the shore, and rifled of its contents. The Indians then decamped with their booty and the four prisoners they had taken.
During the first night, which was spent in revelry and drunkenness, the prisoners were bound down on their backs to the earth, with cords, which were passed about their bodies and limbs, and tied closely to stakes driven in the ground. Their situation was pitiable in the extreme. The rain poured down in torrents ; while their only
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CEREMONY OF ADOPTION.
covering was a blanket thrown over each, the savages having stripped them of their clothing and money.
The next morning they were released from their confinement, and hurried on toward an In- dian village, some sixty-five miles from the mouth of the Miami. When they reached what was pro- bably one of the Shawnese towns, the Indian master of Lancaster suddenly came to him, and, embracing him with tears, exclaimed amidst sobs and lamentations, that he should be his brother in the place of one he had lost during the pre- vious year.
The Indian ceremony of adoption took place im- mediately. Lancaster was stripped of his blanket, and after having his body anointed with bear- oil, was painted of a vermilion colour. He was then taught some fragments of an Indian song, and made to join in the savage festival which ensued. This consisted of songs and dances, one Indian beating time with a stick, the head of which was curiously wrought and trimmed with the hoofs of deer. The ceremony of adoption concluded with the cessation of the perform- ance.
Lancaster continued a captive with the Indians for eight days, in which time, from his great swiftness of foot, he acquired the name of Kiohba, or the Running Buck. He was treated with great kindness by the tribe while his foster-brother re-
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
mained in the camp, but during his absence began to experience rougher treatment.
Captain Jim, under whose charge he was now left, became sullen and vindictive. He quarrelled with his wife, who through fear of him fled from the camp. While he was returning from the pur- suit of her, his daughter, who was well acquainted with her father's moods, and who had become attached to Kiohba, said suddenly to the latter, "Run." Lancaster took her advice, and instantly darted from the camp.
On casting a glance backward from a neigh- bouring eminence, he saw Captain Jim beating the elder Mitchell with a tent pole; and soon after his departure he learned that the younger Mitchell had been painted black and burned at the stake. The father and Brown were subse- quently ransomed by their friends, and after suf- fering hardships and privations almost incredible, returned to Pittsburg. Lancaster was soon out of sight of the Indian encampment, and after run- ning for six days, crossing repeatedly his own trail to set pursuit at default, he safely reached the Ohio River. During this time his only sub- sistence had been four turkey eggs, which he found in the hollow of a tree. Exhausted as he was, he immediately tied himself with bark to the trunk of a box elder tree, and after four hours' unremitting toil, succeeded in reaching the Ken- tucky shore.
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LANCASTER'S ESCAPE.
When he had rested a short time, he determined to float down the river to the station at the falls, which he estimated was between thirty and forty miles distant. Accordingly, he made a small raft by tying two trees together with bark, on which he placed himself with a pole for an oar. A little above Eighteen Mile Island, he heard the sharp report of a rifle, and thinking that his pur- suers had overtaken him, he crouched down and laid himself as close as he could. Hearing no other noise, however, he concluded that his alarm was without foundation. Shortly after, a dread- ful storm broke upon the river, night had already closed in, and the weary fugitive sank almost lifeless on the raft, drenched with rain, benumbed with the cold, and with the terrible apprehension on his mind that he might be precipitated over the falls during the darkness.
At break of day, he was aroused from his death-like lethargy, by one of the most cheering sounds that ever fell on the ears of a forlorn and lost wanderer-the crowing of a cock,-which announced the immediate vicinity of a white set- tlement. The sound revived him; he collected all his energies for one last effort, and sat upright on his little raft. Soon, in the gray light of the morning, he discovered the cabins of his country- men, and was enabled to effect a landing at the mouth of Beargrass-the site of the present city of Louisville.
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
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It was in the early part of this year that the house of the father of Bland Ballard, so well known in frontier annals as a most accomplished woodsman and spy, was attacked by Indians. Old Mr. Ballard had left the little fort on Tick Creek, and gone to a house a little distance off, for the purpose of being nearer to the sugar camp. The first intimation they had of the presence of Indians was early in the morning, when Ben- jamin, another brother, went out to get wood to make a fire. The savages shot him, and then assailed the house. The inmates barred the door, and prepared for defence. There was no man in the house. except Mr. Ballard, but of women there were several. In the fort there was only Bland Ballard, then about twenty-seven years of age, and an old man. As soon as young Ballard heard the guns, he repaired to within shooting distance of his father's house, but dared not venture nearer. Here he commenced using his rifle with good effect. In the mean time the Indians broke open the house and killed his father, with the loss of two of their own number. His stepmother and two sisters were also mur- dered, and the young sister was tomahawked, but she subsequently recovered. When the Indians broke into the house, his stepmother attempted to escape by the back door, but was pursued by one of the savages, who, as he raised his toma- hawk to strike the fatal blow, was shot down by
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CAPTAIN HUBBELL.
Bland Ballard, but not in time to save his mother. The savage and his victim both fell dead together. The Indians were supposed to have numbered sixteen, and before they completed their work of death had sustained a loss of six or seven.
·
CHAPTER IX.
Captain Hubbell descends the Ohio-Is attacked by Indians -His desperate defence-The Indians beaten off-Boat of Captain Greathouse captured-Hubbell again attacked-In- dians retire with great loss-Heroism of a boy-Number of wounded-Painful condition of Captain Hubbell-The boat reaches Limestone-Unsuccessful pursuit of the savages -John May descends the Ohio-Indian stratagem-Finn urges May to put into the Ohio shore-Finn surprised by the savages -- The boat attacked and captured-Skyles wounded -May and Miss Fleming killed-Reception of the Indians by Johnston-Captain Marshall descends the Ohio with three boats-Is pursued by the Indians-The attack and defence -His escape with the loss of two boats.
A SHORT time subsequent to the adventure related in the preceding chapter, a much more terrible affair took place. In March of this year, Captain William Hubbell floated down the Ohio River in a flat-bottomed boat, on his return from the eastward, and after leaving Pittsburg, saw traces of Indians along the banks of the stream, which raised his suspicions and increased his watchfulness. There was on board the boat, be-
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
sides Captain Hubbell, Mr. Daniel Light, and Mr. William Plascut and his family. Before they reached the mouth of the Great Kenawha, the number was increased by additions to twenty ; among whom were three persons whose respective names were Ray, Tucker, and Kilpatrick ; two daughters of the latter, a man by the name of Stoner, an Irishman, and a German.
Information received at Gallipolis confirmed their previous expectation of a serious conflict with a large body of Indians; and as Captain Hubbell had been regularly appointed commander of the boat, he made every preparation to resist the anticipated attack.
The nine men were divided into three watches for the night, who were alternately to be on the look-out for two hours at a time. The arms on board, which unfortunately consisted mainly of old muskets very much out of order, were col- lected, loaded, and put in the best possible condi- tion for service.
About sunrise on the 23d, Hubbell's party overtook a fleet of six boats descending the river in company, and at first concluded to join them for the sake of mutual protection. Finding, however, that they were a careless, noisy set of people, more intent on dancing than watching for Indians, Hubbell determined to push forward alone. One of the six boats, as if also desirous of keeping up with the party under Hubbell,
WILY STRATAGEM.
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pushed forward for a short time ; but its crew at length dropped asleep, and Hubbell, pressing vigorously forward, soon left it in the rear.
Early in the night, a canoe was seen dimly floating down the river, in which were probably Indians on the watch for their prey, fires and other signs were at the same time observed, which indicated the neighbourhood of a formidable body of savages.
Just as daylight began to appear in the east, and before the men were up and at their posts, a voice at some distance below them repeatedly solicited them, in a plaintive tone, to come on shore, as there were some white persons who wished to take a passage in their boat. This the captain naturally concluded to be an Indian arti- fice. He accordingly roused the men, and placed every one upon his guard.
The voice of entreaty was soon changed into the language of indignation and insult, and the sound of distant paddles announced the approach of the savage foe. At length, three Indian canoes were seen through the mist of the morning rapidly advancing, and with the utmost coolness the cap- tain and his companions prepared to receive them.
Every man took his position, and was ordered not to fire till the savages came nearly up to the boat ; a special caution being given that the men should fire in succession, so that there might be no intervals.
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
On the arrival of the canoes, they were found to contain from twenty-five to thirty Indians in each. As soon as they approached within musket- shot, they poured in a general fire from one of the canoes, by which Tucker and Light were both wounded. The three canoes now placed them- selves on the bow, stern, and side of the boat, and commenced a raking fire upon the voyagers ; but the steady firing from the boat had a power- ful effect in checking the confidence and the fury of the savages.
Captain Hubbell, after firing his own gun, took up that of one of the wounded men, and was in the act of discharging it when a ball came and tore away the lock; he coolly turned round, seized a brand of fire, and applying it to the pan, discharged it with effect. He was in the act of raising his gun a third time, when a ball passed through his right arm, which for a moment dis- abled him.
Just as he had recovered the use of his hand, which had been momentarily drawn up by the wound, he observed the Indians about to board the boat. Severely wounded as he was, he rushed forward to the bow and assisted in forcing them off, first by the discharge of a pair of horse pis- tols, and afterward by billets of wood which had been prepared for the fire. Meeting with so des- perate a resistance, the Indians at length discon- tinued the contest.
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DESPERATE DEFENCE.
The boat which Hubbell had previously left behind during the slumber of its crew, now ap- pearing in sight, the canoes were rapidly directed towards it. They boarded it without opposition, killed Captain Greathouse and a lad of about fourteen years of age, placed the women in the centre of their canoes, and manning them with a fresh reinforcement from the shore, again pursued Hubbell and his party. A melancholy alterna- tive now presented itself to these brave, but desponding men. They must either fall them- selves a prey to the savages, or run the risk of shooting the women in the canoes, who had been purposely placed there by the Indians, in the hope of obtaining protection from their presence. Hubbell was compelled for the sake of his own wounded to risk the latter, well knowing how lit- tle mercy was to be expected if the savages were victorious.
There were now but four men left on board of Captain Hubbell's boat capable of defending it, and the captain himself was severely wounded in two places. The second attack, however, was re- sisted with almost incredible firmness and vigour. Whenever the Indians would rise to fire, their opponents would commonly give them the first shot, which in almost every instance would prove fatal. Notwithstanding the disparity of numbers, - and the exhausted condition of the defenders of the boat, the Indians at length appeared to de-
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HISTORY OF KENTUCKY.
- spair of success, and the canoes successively retired to the shore. Just as the last one was departing, Captain Hubbell called to the Indian who was standing in the stern, and on his turning round, discharged his piece at him. When the smoke, which for a moment obstructed the vision, was dissipated, he was seen lying on his back, and appeared to be severely, perhaps mortally wounded.
Unfortunately the boat now drifted near to the shore where the Indians were collected, and a large concourse, probably between four and five hundred, were seen rushing down on the bank. Ray and Plascut, the only men remaining unhurt, were placed at the oars, and as the boat was not more than twenty yards from shore, it was deemed prudent for all to lie down in as safe a position as possible, and attempt to push forward with the utmost practicable rapidity. While they continued in this situation, nine balls were shot into one oar, and ten into the other, without wounding the rowers, who were hidden from view and protected by the side of the boat and the blankets in its stern. During this dreadful ex- posure to the fire of the savages, which continued about twenty minutes, Mr. Kilpatrick observed a particular Indian, whom he thought a favourable mark for his rifle, and, notwithstanding the solemn warning of Captain Hubbell, rose to shoot him. He immediately received a ball in his
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