Sketches, historical and descriptive, of Louisiana, Part 36

Author: Stoddard, Amos, 1762-1813
Publication date: 1812
Publisher: Philadelphia : Published by Mathew Carey
Number of Pages: 978


USA > Louisiana > Sketches, historical and descriptive, of Louisiana > Part 36


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


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It appears that Madoc committed himself to the sea, sailing west to the north of Ireland, and finally came to land unknown. The question is, to what unknown land does he allude ? Every reader must be ready to pronounce, that the land he discovered was either among the islands, or on the continent of America.


Dr. John Williams, in " an enquiry concerning the " first discovery of America by the Europeans," has quo- ted the Welsh authorities already mentioned, and illus- trated them by references to some subsequent writers, whom we shall endeavor to follow.


In 1620, " a brief description of the whole world" was published in London. The writer makes several remarks on the supposed voyages and discoveries of king Arthur, and justifies queen Elizabeth in not claiming them by de-


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scent, " imagining them to be grounded on fabulous foun- " dations," and adds, " only this doth convey some shew " with it, that now, some hundred years, there was a " knight of Wales, who, with shipping, and some petty " company did go to discover these parts, (America) " whereof, as there is some record of reasonable credit a- " mongst the monuments of Wales, so there is nothing " which giveth more frequent shew thereunto than that, " in the late navigations of some of our monta Norumbe- " ga,* and some other parts of America, they found " some tokens of civility and christian religion."


One of the most remarkable documents on this subject is the narrative of Morgan Jones, (who, it seems, was a . clergyman) dated March the tenth, 1686, and published in the gentleman's magazine for 1740; the substance of which is as follows : IIe certifies that, in the year 1660, while he was an inhabitant of Virginia, and chaplain to major general Bennet, he accompanied two ships to Ca- rolina as their minister, and landed at Oyster Point, where they continued eight months. The want of pro- visions induced him and five others to travel back to Vir- ginia over land. The Tuscaroras, who were settled on Pontigo river, seized them as prisoners, and gave them to understand that they must die. On this intelligence, Jones, (who was a Welshman) exclaimed in the Welsh tongue, " have I escaped so many dangers, and must I " now be knocked on the head like a dog!" A war chief then came to him, and embraced him by the middle, and told him in the same language, that he should not die ! He and his men were then received with welcome into the Tuscarora town, where they were entertained for four months; during which time a conversation was carried on in the Welsh language, and Jones preached to them


* The first discoverers of the New England coast, gave this name to the bay of Penobscot, or to the country about it.


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three times a week : They could confer together on the most difficult subjects. He declares, among other things, his readiness to conduct any Welshman, or others to the country. This account written by Jones himself, and- addressed to Dr. Thomas Lloyd of New York, was fi- nally deposited in the Ashinolean museum, where it now remains.


This narrative of Jones is strongly supported by seve- ral others. Dr. Williams mentions, that another clergy- man was taken prisoner by the Indians in Virginia, soon after the settlement of it, and that he saved his life by the knowledge he had of their language, which was Welsh. " They produced a book, which he found to be the bible, " but which they could not read !" Were it not for this remarkable circumstance, we should be inclined to be- lieve, that the discovery of the last mentioned clergyman, has been mistaken for that of Jones."


In the " British Remains," published in 1777, appear- ed a letter written by Charles Lloyd, bearing date about the same period with the narrative of Jones, which serves to confirm the two preceding statements. It alleges that - one Stedman, about thirty years before the date of the letter, was on the coast of America in a Dutch bottom, and that when he was about to land, the natives strongly opposed him. He understood their language, which was Welsh, and spoke to them; after which they were very courteous, and supplied him with the best things they had. They told Stedman, that their ancestors came from a country called Gwynedd, (North Wales) in Prydain fawr, (Great Britain.) This discovery is supposed to have been somewhere between Virginia and Florida. It is also stated in addition to this, that one Oliver Humphreys, a merchant of Surinam, informed the same Charles Lloyd, that the master of an English privateer or pirate, in re- pairing his vessel near Florida, became acquainted with


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the Indian tongue spoken there, which was afterwards found to be Welsh.


Some authorities of a more recent date are now to be stated, relative to the existence of the Welsh in another quarter. Father Charlevoix possessed talents and an in- quisitive turn of mind, though he has heen deemed some- what credulous. He was a French missionary, and tra- velled from Canada to the Mississippi in 1721; he took much pains to inform himself of the history, religion, language, customs, and manners, of the different Indian nations. Some Indians, whom he calls the Aiouaz, (pro- bably the Iowas) informed him, " that the Omans,* three " days journey from them, had white skins and fair hair, " especially the women." They further alleged, that the Pawnes, and other distant nations to the west, had often told them, " that there was a great lake, very far from " their country, on the borders of which were people re- " sembling the French, with buttons (leather) on their " clothes, living in cities, and using horses in hunting the " buffaloe, and clothed with the skins of that animal, but " destitute of any arms, except the bow and arrow." In another part of the same work the good father thus ex- presses himself; " I met in the bay (in lake Michigan) " some Scioux, of whom I made many enquiries about " the countries which are to the west and northwest of Ca- " nada ; and though I know we must not entirely depend " on what the savages say, yet by comparing what I have " heard from them, with that which I have heard from " many others, I have great reason to believe, that there " are on this continent some Spaniards, or European colo-' " nies, much more north than any we know of in Mexico " or California." Carver spent the winter of 1766, among the Scioux on the river St. Pierre. They told him, thas


* No nation by this name is known at the present day.


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about the heads of the Missouri lived " a nation rather " smaller and whiter than the neighbouring tribes, who " cultivated the ground ;" and from various intimations it appeared evident, that they were in some measure ac- quainted with the arts.


A Welshman by the name of Griffith was taken pri- soner by the Shawnee Indians about the year 1764, and conducted to their towns. His adventures* were made public in 1804, from which the following particulars are abridged.


Two years after the captivity of Griffith, five Shaw- nees resolved to penetrate to the source of the Missouri, and they admitted him of the party. They had a long and laborious journey to the shining mountains, through which the Missouri finds its way. In these mountains ". they accidentally met with three white men in the In- dian dress, with whom they travelled for some time. when they arrived at their village, and found the whole nation of the same complexion. A council was soon assembled, and the question was debated for three days, What shall be done with the strangers ? It was fi- nally concluded to put them to death, especially as they appeared to belong to a warlike nation, and were proba- bly exploring the country to find out a suitable place for the future residence of their friends. Griffith, whose presence created no suspicion, could remain silent no lon- ger. He addressed the council in Welsh, and explained the motives of their journey. It is needless to say, that full confidence was restored, and the strangers treated with kindness. Nothing could be ascertained of their history, except that their forefathers came up the Missouri from a very distant country. There was not a black man


. These were detailed by him to a man now living in Kentucky, and published by Harry Toulmin, esquire, at present one of the Judges of the Missisippi Territory.


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. in the nation, which was pretty numerous. The party returned to the Shawnee towns, after an absence of two years and six months. . Griffith soon made his escape, and joined his friends in the back part of Virginia.


The subsequent narrative, corroborative of the one just mentioned, was given to the author of these sketches in May, 1805, by a Frenchman in upper Louisiana. This man had been several years employed in the north west by the English traders. His usual station was at the fac- tory or trading house on the Assinniboine, a few days travel only from the Mandans on the Missouri. The con- ductor of that establishment aimed to extend the trade, and for this purpose selected a party, of which the in- formant was one, to explore the Missouri. In ascending that'river they were obliged to pass one or two cataracts or falls in the shining mountains, as also several rapids, and much hard water. On the summit of these moun- tains they entered a large lake, from which the Missouri flows; and from the opposite extremity another river is- sued towards the west, down which the informant des- cended for some distance, and spent eleven days on it. "The publication of the narrative of Griffith suggested the propriety of some enquiry relative to the Indians about the head of the Missouri. The informant declared, (and he sustains the character of a man of truth) " that there " was a numerous and singular nation of Indians about " the lake, who were not in the least tawny, but rather of a " yellowish complexion ; that they wear their beards, and " that great numbers of them had red hair on their " heads." This is almost literally the statement furnish- ed by the Frenchman.


This account is strongly supported by two others. Van- couver found a people in the vicinity of Columbia river, speaking a language different from that of their neighbors, und in features resembling the northern Euro- peans. Captains Lewis and Clark discovered some peo-


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ple near the mouth of the same river, who had red or san- dy hair on their heads.


That the Welsh once existed on our coast between the gulf of Mexico and the Potomac, and also on the upper Mississippi, particularly about the head of the Missouri, is at least probable from the preceding proofs. That they more recently resided on Red river, is rendered as pro- bable from the proofs now to be adduced.


In the year 1766, an Indian missionary by the name of Beatty, travelled into the western country, where he met with several persons, who had lived with the Indians from their youth, among whom were Benjamin Sutton, and Levi Hicks.


Sutton informed him, that when he was with the Chock- taw nation on the Mississippi, he went to an Indian town " a very considerable distance above New Orleans, whose " inhabitants were of different complexions, not so taw- " ny as those of the other Indians, and who spoke Welsh." He saw a book among them, which he supposed was the Welsh bible; " they kept it carefully wrapped up in a " skin, but they could not read it." After this he heard some Indians among the Shawnees speak Welsh with a native of Wales by the name of Lewis. " This Welsh " tribe, now (1766,) live on the west side of the Missis- " sippi river, a great way above New Orleans." IIe also alleged that both men and women observed the rites and ceremonies prescribed by the Mosaic law ; the former " observed the feasts of the first fruits," and the latter occasionally " separated seven days from the men."


Hicks told the Missionary, " that he once attended an " embassy in a town of Indians on the west side of the " Mississippi river, who talked Welsh ;" and the Indian interpreter of this missionary added, " that he saw some " Indians, whom he supposed to be of the same tribe, who " talked Welsh ;" and he repeated some words in their language, which were found to be Welsh.


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About the year 1764, captain Isaac Stewart, with some others, was taken prisoner by the Indians, and conducted to the Wabash. Subsequent to his liberation from capti- vity he published the following narrative in England.


" After remaining two years in bondage among the In- "dians, a Spaniard came to the nation, having been sent " from Mexico on discoveries. He made application to " the chiefs for redeeming me, and another white man, " who was in a like situation, named John David, which " they complied with. And we took our departure in " company with the Spaniard to the westward, crossing " the Mississippi near Rouge, or Red river, up which " we travelled seven hundred miles, when we came to a " nation of Indians remarkably white, and whose hair " was of a reddish color, at least mostly so. They lived " on the banks of a small river, which is called the River " Post. In the morning of the day after our arrival, the " Welshman, (David) informed me, that he was deter- " mined to remain with them, giving as a reason, that he " understood their language, it being very little different " from the Welsh. My curiosity was excited very much " by this information; and I went with my companion to " the chief men of the town, who informed him, (in a " language that I had no knowledge of, and which had no ". affinity to that of other Indian tongues that I ever heard) " that their forefathers in this nation, came from a foreign " country, and landed on the cast side of the Mississippi, " describing particularly the country called Florida, and " that on the Spaniards taking possession of Mexico, they " fled to their then abode. And as a proof of what he " advanced, he brought forth rolls of parchment, which " were carefully tied up in otter skins, on which were " large characters written with blue ink. The characters " I did not understand, and the Welshman being unac- " quainted with letters, I was not able to know the mean- " ing of the writing. They are a bold, hardy, and intre-


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" pid people, very warlike, and the women beautiful, " when compared with other Indians."


Some other proofs of a similar nature, recorded in works of celebrity, are intentionally omitted; and those inserted in this chapter are considerably abridged, except .. the passages included in inverted commas : More attenti- on has been paid to the substance they contain than to the multiplicity of words and conjectures, with which they abound.


: Against these authorities several plausible objections may be urged, calculated at first blush to weaken their validity. In the first place it may be said that, if they prove any thing, they prove too much; because they al- lude to a Welsh tribe in Virginia, to a second in Florida, to a third on Red river, to a fourth on the Mississippi, to a fifth on the Missouri, and perhaps to a sixth on the Wabash; whereas it is hardly to be expected that they e- ver became so -numerous, or so much dispersed, as to oc- cupy these different and distant regions. In the second place it may be said, that there are no Indians within our knowledge, whose appearance indicates an European ori- . gin: That Morgan Jones, and the other clergyman, al- ready noticed, made no such discoveries about the year . 1660, as they pretend; because if the Tuscaroras were of Welsh extraction, and spoke the Welsh language at that pe- riod, their origin must have been subsequently discovered, and some traces of the Welsh dialect found among them at the present day. These and several other objections naturally arise from a view of the subject, and suggest the propriety of a few cursory remarks.


The number of people drawn from Wales by Madoc, cannot be easily conjectured; the only data we have for calculation are, that he made three voyages, and that he sailed with ten ships on the last voyage. If we estimate the whole number at twenty, perhaps we shall be within the bounds of probability; and if we suppose each to


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have carried fifty five colonists, (a number about equal to . the size of the vessels in those days) the whole number would be eleven hundred. From. the time of their mi- gration, to that of their discovery in 1660, was nearly five hundred years; and if we allow them to double once in every fifty years, (an increase of population a little more than half only to that generally admitted among civilized nations) the whole number at the period of discovery was nearly one million, one hundred twenty six thousand, four hundred; and by the same rule of calculation their number at this time rather exceeds eight millions. But the sanguinary warfare of European christians on this great continent, has thinned it of its ancient inhabitants, and many once numerous and powerful nations are con- signed to oblivion. Several nations of this description formerly inhabited Red river, the Arkansas, and the Mis- sissippi; and to the moderns they are known only in the records of the first settlers of Louisiana ..


Perhaps the third colony never joined the other two; and this is partly to be inferred from a circumstance soon to be mentioned. At any rate, it is natural to conclude, that Madoc, in whatever part of the world he was cast, exercised the supreme authority over those with him till his death; his rank and enterprise gave him a claim to this distinction. If they planted themselves contiguous to other nations, wars most probably ensued ; and as the tactics of the Welsh were doubtless superior to those of their enemies, the issue must have been in their favor. Their knowledge likewise of fortification served to se- cure them from danger, while it proved destructive to those less acquainted with it. Hence we are led to be- lieve, that population was rapid among them; and per- haps the more so as they had exchanged a foggy and barren country, for one of a serene atmosphere, and more prolific in the necessaries of life, both vegetable and ani- mal. No doubt they preserved many of the useful arts for


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a long time, particularly the art of war, which enabled them to reside in regions of their choice, and to multiply in se- curity. It seems fair to attribute to them the numerous monuments of art and skill found about the country. If the Tuscaroras are of Welsh extraction, they probably built the subterraneous wall discovered a few years ago in North Carolina. This indeed, is the more likely, as they inhabited that part of the country till about a centu- ry ago, when they incorporated themselves with the On- eidas; because, from an affinity in their language, they believed the two tribes to be branches of the same com- mon stock .* The wall alluded to is of unquestionable antiquity. It is wholly buried beneath the earth, which has been rolled from the circumjacent high grounds. One hundred and sixty feet of its length was recently unco- vered, as likewise' nearly thirty feet of its depth. It is built of stone, and well cemented. It is uniformly two feet thick, and both sides of it are smooth. In fine, in the construction of this wall may be discovered a people considerably advanced in the arts. This specimen of re- gular masonry, however, is less to be admired than the instances of the art discovered by Columbus on the island of Cuba, and by his successors on the continent. The perfection of the arts was more particularly witnessed in the city and valley of Mexico. The arms of Montezu- ma, suspended in a broad shield over the front gate of his palace, (a griffin with expanded wings, holding a tyger in his talons ) appear to be derived from the heraldry of Europe. Yet we must not yield lightly to the idea, that the ancient Mexicans were the descendants of the Welsh. The in- vestigations of able historians have rendered it pretty cer- tain, that some of the most polished nations of Anahuac


* This serves as proof, that the last colony never joined the other two, or that an early separation took place, and the bands or tribes remained disunited, probably for centuries.


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were of Asiatic origin, and arrived there from the north west coast of America, as early as the seventh century. Therefore, before we can presume the Welsh to have pe- netrated into Mexico, we must prove a gross anachronism in the details of historians.


No doubt the death of Madoc, and the augmented po- pulation of the Welsh, served to create divisions among them, which ended in their dispersion under different chiefs. These evils, indeed, afflicted Wales before and at the time of the migration ; and it seems just to con- clude, that the example of the mother country had some influence over the colonists in this country. The temper and disposition of the Welsh in those days created a suc- cession of wars and divisions among them; and hence the dispersion of the migrated bands, was probably at- tended with a waste of blood.


That such discoveries as we have mentioned were ac- tually made, seem the more probable, as there is a re- markable coincidence and agreement, between the seve- veral accounts of them. The existence of a Welsh tribe in Virginia, said to be the Tuscaroras, is attested by two clergymen, both of whom saved their lives by the know- ledge they had of their-language. The testimony also of Stedman and Humphreys, though somewhat apocry- phal, proves the existence of the Welsh in or near Flori- da ; and the former declares they told him, " that their fa- " thers came from a country called North Wales, in Great " Britain !" There is likewise the testimony of three persons to prove the existence of the Welsh bible among at least two tribes of them; and it is worthy of remark, that these three persons lived at different eras, and indeed in different centuries, and were wholly unconnected and unknown to each other. On what ground shall we con- sider their testimony, as well as that of many other per- sons, as the result of artifice, or fraud; especially as it illustrates the same points, grows out of different occasi-


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ons, and was published nearly at the same time ? Most of the great events recorded in ancient history, and even those in the history of modern Europe, are supported by evidence much less certain and conclusive ..


That a white people recently inhabited some part of the country near the head of the Missouri, we learn from Charlevoix and the other French traveller, already noti- ced; and that these white people were Welsh, is render- ed almost certain from the testimony of Griffith. This man more than intimates, that they were settled along the banks of the Missouri within the shining mountains. The French traveller, and the authorities produced by Charlevoix, place them about a lake. The former in- deed alleges, that he found such a people about the lake, , which forms the source of the Missouri. No doubt they all refer to the same place, and to the same people. The different accounts of these men support each other; they serve at least as collateral proofs, and create a vio- 1 lent presumption, that the Welsh, or some other white people, inhabit the country about one of the head bran- ches of the Missouri .*


* As another proof, that the Welsh once lived in or near Florida, and also on the Missouri, the following interesting letter, (received. since this chapter was prepared for the press) from his excellency, John Sevier, dated, Knoxville, Tennessee, October 9th, 1810, is here introduced.


" I shall with pleasure, give you the information required, so far as my memory will now serve me, and the help of a memorandum I hastily took on the subject, of a nation of people called the Welsh In- dians. In the year 1782, I was on a campaign against the Cherokees, and during my route, discovered traces of very ancient fortifications. Some time after the expedition, I had occasion to enter into a negotia- tion with the Cherokee chiefs, for the purpose of exchanging prison- ers. . After the exchange had been settled, I took an opportunity of enquiring of a venerable old chief, named Oconostoto, (then, and for nearly sixty years had been, a ruling chief of the Cherokee nation,) . if he could inform me of the people that had ief such signs of forti- fications in their country ? and particularly the one on the bank of the


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. If indeed there be a Welsh or white people in that quarter, as the authorities indicate, why were they not discovered by captains Lewis and Clark on their way to, or return from the Pacific ocean? This question admits of a satisfactory answer.


Highwassee river ? The old warrior briefly answered me as follows: " It is banded down by our forefathers, that the works were made by " white people, who had formerly inhabited the country, while " the Cherokees lived lower down in the country, now called "South Carolina, and that a war existed between the two nations for " many years. At length, it was discovered, that the whites were ma- " king a number of large boats, which induced the Cherokees to sup- " pose, that they intended to descend the Tennessee river. They then " collected their whole band of warriors, and took the shortest and " most convenient route to the muscle shoals in order to intercept them " down the river. In a few days, the boats hove in sight, and a warm " combat ensued, with various success for several days. At length " the whites proposed to the Indians, that if they would exchange " prisoners, and cease hostilities, they would leave the country, and. " never more return ; which was acceded to, and, after the exchange, " parted in friendship. The whites then descended the Tennessee to " the Ohio, and then down to the big river, (Mississippi) then up it " to the muddy river, ( Missouri) then up that river. to a very great " distance. They are now on some of it's branches : But they are no "longer a white people ; they are now all become Indians; and look " like the other red people of the country". I then asked him, if he had ever heard any of his ancestors say what nation of people those white people belonged to ? He answered : " I have heard my " grandfather and other old people say, that they were a people cal- " led Welsh ; that they had crossed the great water, and landed near " the mouth of Alabama river, and were finally driven to the heads of " its waters, and even to Highwassee river, by the Mexican Indians, " who had been driven out of their own country by the Spaniards." Many years past I happened in company with a Frenchman, who lived with the Cherokees, and had been a great explorer of the country west of the Mississippi. IIc informed me, " that he had been high up " the Missouri, and traded several months with the Welsh tribe ; that " they spoke much of the Welsh dialect, and although their customs " were savage and wild, yet many of them, particularly the females " were very fair and white, and frequently told him, they had sprung " from a white nation of people ; also stated they had yet some small " scraps of books remaining among them, but in such tattered and " destructive order, that nothing intelligible remained." He observed


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Those gentlemen found that the Missouri within the shining mountains, and more than two hundred miles be- low its source, was divided into three branches, nearly of an equal size. They pursued their route up the most northern one, and returned the same way. It is there- fore likely, that two of the travellers we have named, as- cended one of the other branches. The account of one of them derives some support from the discoveries of captains Lewis and Clark. On descending the Columbia, they found several tributary rivers, flowing into it from the left, one of which was nearly five hundred yards wide. If a river flows from the lake to the west, as has already been stated, it must join the Columbia from the left be- low the point where those gentlemen intersected it; and it possibly affords a much shorter, and more safe and ex- peditious communication with .the Pacific ocean, than is to be found by the head of the northern branch. It must not be forgotten, that they discovered some straggling In- dians near the mouth of the Columbia, similiar in ap- pearance to those mentioned by Vancouver, and resem- bling those also said to reside on one of the branches of the Missouri.


Of the existence of a people on Red river, speaking the Welsh language, forty or fifty years ago, as has been mentioned, seems difficult to doubt. On what ground


that their settlement was in a very obscure part of the Missouri, sur. rounded with innumerable lofty mountains. The Frenchman's name has escaped my memory, but I believe it was something like Duroque. In my conversation with the old chief Oconostoto, he informed me. that an old woman in his nation named Peg, had some part of an old book given her by an Indian living high up the Missouri, and thought he was one of the Welsh tribe. Unfortunately before I had an oppor- tunity of seeing the book, the old woman's house, and its contents, were consumed by fire. I have conversed with several persons, who saw and examined the book, but it was so worn and disfigured, that nothing intelligible remained ; neither did any one of them under- stand any language but their own, and even that, very imperfectly."


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shall we invalidate the testimony of captain Stewart? This is 'strongly supported by the narratives of Sutton and ITicks. The presumption is violent that they all al- lude to the same people.


. The Ietans or Alitans, are the only Indians in that quarter known to us, who in any great degree answer the descr ption given of the supposed Welsh. About sixty of them, for the first and only time, visited Nachitoches in 180 ;; and it was particularly observed, that the wo- men were comparatively handsome, and that the hair of many of the men was of a sandy complexion. The cus- toms and manners of these people indicate them to be of an origin different from that of their neighbors. Their lives are pastoral. 'Their movements are mostly confined to the Mexican mountains, particularly to the regions about the sources of Red river, the Arkansas, and some of the westerly branches of the Missouri; they follow the buf- faloe and other game, which alternately inhabit the north and the south, the high and the low country. They are the hereditary enemies of the Spaniards, and a predato- ry warfare has long existed between them and some of the Indian tribes of Louisiana. These people are divid- ed into a great number of bands, and some of them were discovered by captains Lewis and Clark in the neighbor- hood of the shining mountains. They uniformly live in tents of a conical figure, fabricated from skins, and so disposed as to resemble the streets and squares of a city. "They are cleanly in their persons and dress, particularly in their cookery, and obesity is common among those ad- vanced in years. Their language widely differs from all others in the country, and few are disposed to encounter the difficulty of acquiring it.


Some enquiry ought to be made into the origin and language of this singular nation, and the trouble and ex- pense of making them a visit, if properly managed, would be inconsiderable. If they spoke the Welsh langu :


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age forty or fifty years ago, it no' doubt still prevails a- mong them. The lapse of more than six centuries, the occasional admission of strange idioms, the revolutions in dress, pursuits, and modes of life, are sufficient to change, and even destroy, the vernacular dialect, not only of the Welsh colonists, but of every nation on the globe. It must, however, be remembered, that the Indians, more than any civilized people, endeavor to preserve their lan- guage in its purity; it is much more liable to fluctuation and change among those in a state of progressive im- provement.


Were it once satisfactorily ascertained, that the Welsh ever established themselves on this continent, a multitude of difficulties would be solved, which at present perplex the learned. In case of such a discovery, the ancient fortifications and other works of art, the traits of civili- zation, and the many tokens of christianity, discovered, by the Spaniards and others at various times and places, ought in some measure to be ascribed to them. To them and to others, most probably of European descent; must likewise be ascribed the confused notion of an universal deluge, entertained by several tribes, apparently of dif- ferent origins. Christianity spread in Wales many centu- ries before Madoc is supposed to have left it, and the scriptures were prevalent in that country; both indeed made their way into the north of Europe soon after their introduction into the southern parts of it. Hence the scripture account of the deluge was unquestionally known to Madoc and his people. It is therefore natural to con- clude, that they brought the scriptures with them to this country, though all knowledge of them long since peri- shed, except what tradition has preserved. In fine, most or all of the traditionary accounts among the aboriginals, which are founded on biblical history, must be traced to the early migrations from Europe and Africa.


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SKETCHES OF LOUISIANA.


Travellers describe certain private societies among the Indians, which apparently resemble our lodges of Free- masons. Their rules of government, and the admission of members, are said to be nearly the same. No one can be received as a member of the fraternity, except by bal- lot, and the concurrence of the whole is necessary to a choice. They have different degrees in the order. The ceremonies of initiation, and the mode of passing from one degree to another, would create astonishment in the mind of an enlightened spectator: Is not this practice of European origin? In the early periods of English histo- ry, the knowledge of freemasonry was mostly confined to the druids; and Wales was more fruitful of this descrip- tion of men, than any other part of Europe. They were almost the only men of learning in those days : They ex- ccuted the functions of priests, historians, and legislators. 'Those in Wales, in particular,, animated their country- men to a noble defence of their liberties, and afforded so much trouble to the first Edward, that he ordered them to be barbarously massacred. This inhuman order, the lineament of a ferocious tyrant, was carried into effect a- bout the year 1282; and a few only of the bards survived to weep over the miseries of their country.


One principal aim of this chapter is to excite a spirit of enquiry. The subject is particularly interesting to the learned, at least of sufficient importance to awaken their curiosity, and to stimulate their enterprise ; it cannot be too often revived, nor too strictly investigated.


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FINIS.


F 876.85


5776H





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