USA > Massachusetts > Our western border : its life, combats, adventures, forays, massacres, captivities, scouts, red chiefs, pioneer women, one hundred years ago, containing the cream of all the rare old border chronicles > Part 38
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While engaged in these occupations at Maysville, Lieutenant Lawler, of the regular army, who was going down the Ohio to Fort Washing- ton, in what was called a Kentucky boat, full of soldiers, landed at Maysville, and found Wetzel sitting in one of the taverns. Returning to the boat, he ordered out a file of soldiers, seized Wetzel and dragged him on board the boat, and, without a moment's delay, pushed off, and that same night delivered him to General Harmar, at Cincinnati, by whom the prisoner was again put in irons, preparatory to his trial and consequent condemnation, for what Lewis disdained to deny or con- ceal, the killing of the Indian at Marietta. But Harmar, like St. Clair, although acquainted with the routine of military service, was destitute of that practical good sense, always indispensable in frontier settlements, in which such severe measures were more likely to rouse the settlers to flame than to intimidate them ; and soon found the country around him in arms.
The story of Wetzel's captivity-captured and liable to punishment for shooting an Indian merely-spread through the settlement like wild- fire, kindling the passions of the frontiermen to a high pitch of fury.
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HIS HAIR REACHED TO HIS CALVES.
Petitions for his release came in to General Harmar, from all quarters and all classes of society. To these, at first, he paid little attention. At length the settlements along the Ohio, and some even of the back counties, began to embody in military array to release the prisoner vi et armis. Representations were made to Judge Symmes, which induced him to issue a writ of habeas corpus in the case. John Clawson, and other hunters of Columbia, who had gone down to attend his trial, went security for Wetzel's good behavior ; and, being discharged, he was es- corted with great triumph to Columbia, and treated at that place to his supper, etc.
HIS HAIR REACHED TO HIS CALVES-THRILLING ADVENTURE.
Judge Foster, who gave these last particulars, described him at this period, (August 26th, 1789,) as about twenty-six years of age, about five feet ten inches high. He was full breasted, very broad across the shoulders ; his arms were large ; skin, darker than the other brothers ; his face, heavily pitted with the small-pox ; his hair, of which he was very careful, reached, when combed out, to the calves of the legs ; his eyes remarkably black and " piercing as the dagger's point," and, when excited, sparkling with such vindictive glances as to indicate plainly it was hardly safe to provoke him to wrath. He was taciturn in mixed company, although the fiddle of the party among his social friends and acquaintances. His morals and habits, compared with those of his gen- eral associates and the tone of society in the West of that day, were quite exemplary. He certainly had a rare scalp-one for which the savages would at any time have given a dozen of their best warriors.
Shortly after his return from Kentucky, a relative, from Dunkard Creek, invited Lewis home with him. The invitation was accepted, and the two leisurely wended their way along, hunting and sporting as they traveled. On reaching the home of the young man, what should they see but, instead of the hospitable roof, a pile of smoking ruins ! Wetzel immediately examined the trail, and found that the marauders were three Indians and one white man, and that they had taken one prisoner. That captive proved to be the betrothed of the young man, whom nothing could restrain from pushing on in immediate pursuit.
Placing himself under the direction of Wetzel, the two strode on, hoping to overhaul the enemy before they had crossed the Ohio. It was found, after proceeding a short distance, that the savages had taken great care to obliterate their trail ; but the keen discernment of Wetzel once on the track, and there need not be much difficulty. He knew they would make for the river by the most expeditious route, and there-
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fore, disregarding their trail, he pushed on, so as to head them at the crossing place. After an hour's hard travel, they struck a path which the deer had made, and which their sagacity had taught them to carry over knolls, in order to avoid the great curves of ravines. Wetzel fol- lowed the path because he knew it was almost in a direct line to the point at which he was aiming. Night coming on, the tireless and determined hunters partook of a hurried meal, then again pushed forward, guided by the lamps hung in the heavens above them, until, toward midnight, a heavy cloud shut out their light and obscured the path.
Early on the following morning they resumed the chase, and, de- scending from the elevated ridge, along which they had been passing for an hour or two, found themselves in a deep and quiet valley, which looked as though human steps had never before pressed its virgin soil. Traveling a short distance, they discovered fresh footsteps in the soft sand, and, upon close examination, the eye of Wetzel's com- panion detected the impress of a small shoe, with nail-heads around the heel, which he at once recognized as belonging to his affianced. Hour after hour the pursuit was kept up; now tracing the trail across the hills, over alluvium, and often detecting it where the wily captors had taken to the beds of streams. Late in the afternoon they found themselves approaching the Ohio, and, shortly after dark, discovered, as they struck the river, the camp of the enemy on the opposite side, and just below the mouth of Captina. Swimming the river, the two reconnoitered the position of the camp, and discovered the locality of the captive. Wetzel proposed waiting until daylight before making the attack, but the almost frantic lover was for immediate action. Wetzel, however, would listen to no suggestion, and thus they waited the break of day.
At early dawn the savages were up and preparing to leave, when Wetzel directed his companion to take good aim at the white renegade, while he would make sure work of one of the Indians. They fired at the same moment, and with fatal effect. Instantly the young man · rushed forward to release the captive; and Wetzel, reloading, pursued the two Indians who had taken to the woods to ascertain the strength of the attacking party. Wetzel pursued a short distance, and then fired his rifle at random, to draw the Indians from their retreat. The trick succeeded, and they made after him with uplifted tomahawks, yelling at the height of their voices. The adroit hunter soon had his rifle loaded, and wheeling suddenly, discharged its contents through the body of his nearest pursuer. The other Indian now rushed impetuous- ly forward, thinking to dispatch his enemy in a moment. Wetzel, however, kept dodging from tree to tree, and, being more fleet than
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the Indian, managed to keep ahead until his unerring gun was again loaded, when, turning, he fired, and the last of the party lay dead be- fore him.
Soon after this, our hero determined to visit the extreme South, and for that purpose engaged on a flat boat about leaving for New Orleans. Many months elapsed before his friends heard anything of his where- abouts, and then it was to learn that he was in close confinement at New Orleans, under some weighty charge. What the exact nature of this charge was, has never been fully ascertained; but it is very certain he was imprisoned and treated like a felon for nearly two years. The charge is supposed to have been of some trivial character, and has been justly regarded as a great outrage. It was alleged, at the time of his arrest, to have been for uttering counterfeit coin; but this being dis- proved, it was then charged that he had been guilty of an amour with the wife of a Spaniard.
Of the nature of these charges, however, but little is known. He was finally released by the intervention of our government, and reached home by way of Philadelphia, to which city he had been sent from New Orleans. He remained but two days on Wheeling Creek after his re- turn, and De Hass learned from several citizens who saw him then that his personal appearance was much changed. From the settlement he went to Wheeling, where he remained a few days, and then left again for the South, vowing vengeance against the person whom he believed to have been accessory to his imprisonment, and in degrading his per- son with the vile rust of a felon's chain. During his visit to Wheeling, he remained with George Cookis, a relative. Mrs. Cookis plagued him about getting married, and jocularly asked whether he ever intended to take a wife. "No," he replied, "there is no woman in this world for me, but I expect there is one in heaven."
After an absence of many months, he again returned to the neigh- borhood of Wheeling; but whether he avenged his real or imaginary wrongs upon the person of the Spaniard alluded to, is not known. His propensity to roam the woods was still as great as ever ; and an in- cident occurred which showed that he had lost none of his cunning while undergoing incarceration at New Orleans. Returning homeward, from a hunt north of the Ohio, somewhat fatigued and a little careless of his movements, he suddenly espied an Indian, in the very act of raising his gun to fire. Both immediately sprang to trees, and there they stood for an hour, each afraid of the other.
What was to be done? To remain there the whole day, for it was 3 then early in the morning, was out of the question. Now it was that the sagacity of Wetzel displayed itself over the child-like simplicity of
r
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the savage. Cautiously adjusting his bear-skin cap to the end of his ramrod-with the slightest, most dubious and hesitating motion, as though afraid to venture a glance-the cap protruded. An instant, a crack, and off was torn the fatal cap, by the sure ball of the vigilant savage. Leaping from his retreat, our hero rapidly advanced upon the astonished Indian, and ere the tomahawk could be brought to its work of death, the tawny foe sprang convulsively into the air, and, straight- ening as he descended, fell upon his face quite dead.
Wetzel was universally regarded as one of the most efficient scouts and most practiced woodsmen of the day. He was frequently engaged by parties who desired to hunt up and locate lands, but were afraid of the Indians. Under the protection of Lewis Wetzel, however, they felt safe, and thus he was often engaged for months at a time. Of those who became largely interested in western lands was John Madison, brother of James, afterward President Madison. He employed Lewis Wet- zel to go with him through the Kanawha region. During their expedi- tion they came upon a deserted hunter's camp, in which were concealed some goods. Each of them helped himself to a blanket, and that day, in crossing Little Kanawha, they were fired upon by a concealed party of Indians, and Madison was killed.
General Clark, the companion of Lewis in the celebrated tour across the Rocky Mountains, had heard much of Lewis Wetzel in Kentucky, and determined to secure his services in the perilous enterprise. A mes- senger was accordingly sent for him, but he was reluctant to go. How- ever, he finally consented, and accompanied the party during the first three months' travel, but then declined going any farther, and returned home. Shortly after this he left again, on a flat boat, and never re- turned. He visited a relative named Philip Sikes, living about twenty miles in the interior from Natchez, and there made his home until the Summer of 1808, when he died. The late venerable David McIntyre, of Belmont county, Ohio, one of the most reliable and respectable men in the State, said that he met Lewis Wetzel at Natchez, in April 1808, and remained with him three days. That Lewis told him he would visit his friends during the then approaching Summer. But, alas, that visit was never made ! His journey was to " that undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveler returns."
The number of scalps taken by the Wetzels in the course of the long Indian war, exceeds belief. There is no doubt they were very little short of one hundred. War was the business of their lives. They would prowl through the Indian country singly, suffer all the fatigues of hasty marches in bad weather, or starvation lying in close conceal- ment, watching for a favorable opportunity to inflict death on the de-
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voted victims who would be so unfortunate as to come within their vindictive grasp.
As to Martin and John Wetzel, wrote McDonald, I have but a faint recollection of their personal appearance. Jacob Wetzel was a large man, of full habit, but not corpulent. He was about six feet high, and weighed about two hundred pounds. He was a cheerful, pleasant com- panion, and in every respect as much of a gentleman in his manners as most of the frontiermen. They were all dark skinned and wore their hair, which was very long and thick, curled, and no part of it was suf- fered to be cut off. Lewis Wetzel had a full breast, and was very broad across the shoulders ; his arms were large; his limbs were not heavy ; his skin was darker than his brothers ; his face considerably pitted by the small-pox ; his hair, of which he was very careful, reached, when combed out, to the calves of his legs ; his eyes were remarkably black, and when excited, (which was easily done,) they would sparkle with such a vindictive glance as almost to curdle the blood to look at him. In his appearance and gait there was something different from other men. Where he professed friendship, he was as true as the needle to the pole ; his enmity was always dangerous. In mixed company he was a man of few words; but with his particular friends he was a social, and even a cheerful companion. Notwithstanding their numberless ex- ploits in war, they were no braggadocios. When they had killed their enemies, they thought no more about it than a butcher would after kill- ing a bullock. It was their trade.
Happily all the old frontiermen were not such dare-devils as were the Wetzels. If they had been, the country could never have been set- tled. The men who went forward with families, and erected block- houses and forts, and remained stationary to defend them, and to culti- vate the earth, were the most efficient settlers. The Wetzels, and others of the same grit, served as a kind of out-guards, who were continually ranging from station to station in search of adventure; so that it was almost impossible for large bodies of the enemy to approach the set- tlements without being discovered by those vigilant, restless rangers, who would give the alarm to the forts. In this way all were useful ; even the timid (for there were some such) would fight in defence of their fort.
CHAPTER V.
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THE ZANE FAMILY, WHO SETTLE WHEELING.
Our forest life was rough and rude, And dangers closed us round ; But here, amid the green old trees, Freedom was sought and found. Oft through our cabins, wintry blasts Would rush with shriek and moan ;
We cared not. Though they were but frail, We felt they were our own. Oh, free and manly lives we led, Mid verdure or mid snow ; In the days when we were Pioneers, Full fifty years ago .- W. D. Gallagher.
On a bright sunny morning of June, 1779, a bold and stalwart youth, clad in hunting shirt and buckskins, stood upon the high bluff just above the confluence of Wheeling Creek with the Ohio. He was, save the companionship of his faithful dog, utterly alone. The morning mist that covered the Ohio and the bottoms and valleys adjacent, was lazily lifting under the beams of a fervid sun. Not a breath of air disturbed the glittering dewdrops which sparkled upon the fresh green frondage, and as the ravished eye of the intrepid pioneer took in, feature by fea- ture, the glorious panorama of hill and valley, wood and water, plain and island, now unrolled before him, his heart bounded with delight, and his "prophetic ken" forecast the future. That matchless scene of beauty was to him "a joy forever."
This solitary adventurer was Ebenezer Zane, scarce yet twenty-three years old. He was one of that "wild-turkey breed" of heroes, with heart full of that game spirit of old, which compelled him to abandon home and society, and strike out alone through the wilderness. He was so much delighted with what he now saw, and so impressed with the manifest advantages of the location, that he concluded to found a set- tlement there. Building himself a rude cabin, and remaining one sea- , son on the Ohio, hunting and exploring, he returned to Berkely county,
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THE ZANE FAMILY, WHO SETTLE WHEELING.
East Virginia, for his family. Acquainting his friends with the magnifi- cent country he had traversed, he induced a few farmers, of like spirit with himself, to accompany him to the wilderness in 1772.
Deeming it unsafe as well as unwise to carry his family direct to their new abode, he left them at Redstone, on the Monongahela, while he, accompanied by his brothers, Silas, Andrew and Jonathan, (of whom more anon,) and by Bonnet, Wetzel, Messer and one or two others, crossed to the Ohio by way of Catfish Camp, (now Washington, Pa.) When within a few hundred yards of the forks of Wheeling Creek, some six or seven miles back from the Ohio, an incident occurred, says De Hass, the historian of Western Virginia, trivial in its character but im- portant in its results.
Wetzel was riding in advance, when suddenly the girth of his saddle broke, compelling him to dismount. Meantime, Silas Zane passed on. and coming to the forks of the creek, and greatly admiring the locality commenced tomahawking his right. "Tomahawk rights" were made by deadening a few trees and marking the bark of one or more with the initials of the person who claimed the locality. . These "rights" were generally respected by the primitive settlers, and were frequently bought and sold. The land thus secured by Silas Zane, one thousand acres, is now one of the most valuable and highly improved farms in all Virginia.
The little band soon stood on the commanding bluff above Wheeling Creek and as they gazed at the magnificent outstretch below them, at once admitted that the "half had not been told them." With sturdy arms they soon opened a clearing and let the blessed sunshine into the heart of the sombre forest. Completing his cabin, Ebenezer Zane re- moved his family and soon the Wheeling settlement began to grow and flourish. Zane's clearing embraced about ten acres, all now a part of the city of Wheeling.
His wife was Elizabeth McColloch, sister to the two daring borderers whom we shall speedily mention. She bore him no less than thirteen children, the descendants of whom are now scattered all over the " Great West." She was a matron of remarkable force of character as well as kindness of heart, and her zeal, devotion and generosity were celebrated the whole length of the border. She was especially famous for her skill in the healing art, and many were the sick and wounded whom she tended with her own hands and restored to health when all had despaired.
To give one instance only, she and Rebecca Williams dressed the wounds of a scout by name of Thomas Mills, who had been brought into the fort shot by Indians in no less than fourteen places, while en- gaged spearing fish by moonlight. None thought it possible he could
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survive, but by simple applications and warm fomentations his indefati- gable nurses not only saved his life, but preserved an arm and leg which were broken and which all said must come off.
The fort built by the Wheeling settlers for protection was first called Fort Fincastle and afterwards Fort Henry, and for many years was a famous one on the border, having withstood two memorable sieges- one in 1777 and one in 1782. In the first Colonel Ebenezer Zane's home, situate just outside the stockade, was burnt down, but in the last, the new one had been fortified and withstood a desperate attack, giving rise to one of the most noted scenes in western history and known as " Betty Zane's Powder Exploit."
Colonel Zane's intercourse with the Indians during times of peace, was marked with kindness, justness and honorable dealing. After the country became settled, he received from time to time various marks of distinction from Colonial, State and National governments. He was a true gentleman-brave, upright and generous, quick and impetuous in his temper and blunt of speech, but true of heart and of great enter- prise. His personal appearance was marked. Although not very tall, he was uncommonly active and athletic, and in feats of strength and prowess was a match for almost any man in his settlement. His com- plexion was very dark, his brows were beetling and bushy; his nose very prominent and his eyes black and piercing. He was a devoted hunter and spent much of his time in the woods ; but few men could out-shoot and fewer still out-run him. In '96, the government, recog- nizing Colonel Zane's energy and capacity, employed him to open the National Road from Wheeling to Maysville, Ky. This duty, assisted by his brother Jonathan, a son-in-law and a noted Indian guide, he per- formed satisfactorily, and as a reward, Congress granted him the privi- lege of locating military warrants upon three sections of land-the first to be at the crossing of the Muskingum (now Zanesville); the second at the crossing of the Hock-Hocking, (now Lancaster), and the third on the east side of the Scioto, opposite Chillicothe. These fine posses- sions, as well as other large bodies of land he had acquired, became very valuable, and at his death in 1811, at the age of sixty-four, the Colonel was very wealthy.
ZANE'S FOUR BROTHERS AND SISTER BETTY-SHOOTING ADVENTURES.
Colonel Zane's sister Elizabeth was a lady of beauty and accomplish- ments, having been educated at a Quaker school in Philadelphia. At a very early age she became famous for the powder exploit, hereafter to be mentioned. Of his brothers, Silas and Andrew, although prominent
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ZANE'S FOUR BROTHERS AND SISTER BETTY.
settlers and noted hunters, but little has been preserved of note. The latter was killed by Indians while crossing the Scioto. Isaac was a more singular and conspicuous character. When only nine years of age he was taken captive by the Indians, carried to their town and there re- mained four years without seeing a white man. Like many another white lad in similar circumstances, he became so enamored of the free and untrammeled life of the wilderness, that he preferred it to all others. Isaac soon became a thorough Indian, not only in dress and habits but also in complexion. Arrived at manhood, he married the sister of a distinguished Wyandot Chief, by whom he raised a family of eight children. He acquired, with his tawny spouse, large landed posses- sions, and became a very important character in the Indian Confeder- acy ; but, notwithstanding all this, he ever remained true to the whites, and was often the means of communicating important intelligence of Indian attacks, preparing the backwoods settlements for bloody visita- tions. For instance, in 1777, General Hard of Fort Pitt, sent word to Wheeling that Isaac Zane had secretly conveyed information to him that a large army of savages were about to strike a terrible blow upon the border, and asking him to put the whole line on guard. By this timely notice every post on the border was prepared for the attack, and when it finally fell on Wheeling they were all ready there and escaped with comparatively little damage. In consideration of Isaac Zane's valuable services, the government granted him a patent for ten thousand acres of land on Mad river, where he lived and died. The centre of this tract is now Zanesfield, Logan county, Ohio.
Jonathan, another brother, was perhaps the most experienced hunter and woodsman of his day-a man of great energy, resolution and rest- less activity. He knew the woods as a farmer does his fields, and used to make long excursions in search of game and frequently in search of Indians. He rendered invaluable services to the Virginia border in the capacity of spy and ranger. He had the confidence of all the back- woods settlements, and was noted for his strong, earnest will and his in- domitable courage. He frequently acted as guide to noted expeditions, more especially to that of Crawford, in 1782. In the one under Brod- head, in '79, he was severely wounded. It was he who strongly admon- ished Crawford against proceeding, as all the signs gave evidence that the Indians were retiring before him in order to gain time, and that in the end they would overwhelm the whites. He died in Wheeling, leav- ing large landed possessions and several children, the founders of well- known western families.
Jonathan prided himself especially on his skill as a marksman. Once, while returning home through some high weeds from hunting some
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horses, he saw five savages jump into the Ohio, and swim for Zane's Is- land, right opposite Wheeling. Drawing a careful bead on one tufted head, he fired and the Indian sank to rise no more. Loading and fir- ing as fast as possible, he aimed at onė head after another, until three more sank from sight. The fifth and last one, alarmed at the terrible fate of his companions, and hoping to escape the deadly aim of Zane's unerring rifle, took refuge behind a "sawyer," or up-sticking log, near the island. It was some time before Zane could catch sight of any part of the Indian exposed, but at last he saw, or thought he saw, a portion of his abdomen protruding from under the log. Drawing a fine sight, off went the piece, and the savage, after clinging tenaciously for awhile to his log, was observed floating down stream.
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