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 78
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80
Such fine boys soon became favorites. Bold and bright-eyed, muscu- lar and healthy, equal to the Indian boys in all athletic sports and superior to them in intelligence, they were readily adopted into the
727
ADVENTURES OF FIVE KENTUCKY BOYS.
tribe and domesticated in families. Wells, however, fell to the lot of an Indian belonging to some distant town, whither he was taken, and thus separated from his comrades, saw them no more. He remained with the Indians all his life; married a sister of the celebrated chief Little Turtle, and became the father of a family. We have already sketched him at length. The other four adapted themselves so com- pletely to their new mode of life, and seemed so well satisfied with the employments and sports of the savage youth; with fishing and hunting, wrestling, racing and riding Indian ponies, that all suspicion in regard to them was quieted, and they were allowed to roam about unregarded. They were "biding their time;" with a watchfulness that never slept they sought an opportunity to make their escape.
The hour of deliverance came at last. In the Autumn of their cap- ture the warriors set out upon their annual hunt, roaming far off from home, in parties, and leaving their village in the care of the old men, the women and the children. The four boys found themselves one day at a camp, at some distance from the village, engaged in fishing, with no other companions but an old Indian and a squaw. A severe con- flict of mind took place. The long-sought opportunity for escape was at hand; but they could regain their liberty only by the death of a woman and an old man, with whom they were associating as com- panions. To be the captives of a race in hostility with their country- men, of a people they had been taught from infancy to fear and hate, and who had been the murderers of the father of two of them, was not to be tolerated, To leave their companions alive was to insure an early discovery of their flight, and a pursuit which must probably result in their capture and death. All their scruples yielded to a stern neces- sity; the bold resolve was taken; they killed the man and woman, and directed their steps homeward.
Pursuing the nearest course, with the unerring sagacity of Indians themselves, they struck for home through the wilderness. Traveling by night, and lying concealed during the day in coverts and hiding places, living upon wild fruits and nuts, and upon such small game as could be taken with the least noise and the least delay, and practicing all the cunning, the patience and the self-denial of the savage warrior, they reached the bank of the Ohio river, directly opposite to Louisville, after a journey of three weeks. Having no means of crossing the river, which here, at the head of the falls, is wide and rapid, they en- deavored to attract the attention of the people at Louisville by firing their guns; but the Indians having lately been very troublesome, those who heard these signals, not understanding them, were unwilling to cross the river to ascertain their meaning.
728
OUR WESTERN BORDER.
The persevering boys then marched up the shore of the river nearly six miles, and at a place near the Six Mile island constructed a raft, with no tool to facilitate their labors but a knife. Even this frail and rough contrivance was not large enough to carry them all, and the elder Linn, who was an expert swimmer, plunged into the water and pushed the clumsy craft before him, while his companions paddled with all their might with poles. Thus they were wafted slowly and laboriously down and across the stream, until they were discovered from the town, and parties sent to their relief. About the same time the Indians who had been pursuing them reached the shore they had left, fired at them, and expressed their rage and disappointment by loud yells. Young Linn was nearly frozen by his immersion in the water, which, at that season, in the month of November, was very cold; but by the prompt and skillful remedies applied under the direction of his kind guardian, Colonel Pope, who had been driven by the Indians from his residence in the woods, and was now living in Louisville, he was recovered.
-
JONATHAN ALDER CAPTURED_HIS STRANGE RETURN.
In March, 1782, Jonathan Alder, a lad of nine years, while out near his father's home in West Virginia, with his brother David, hunting for a mare and her colt, was taken prisoner by a small party of Indians. His brother ran, but was pursued, and a spear pierced through his body. When finally taken, one caught him about the body while another pulled out the spear. Jonathan moved to him and asked him if he was much hurt, when the little fellow said he was, which were his last words. At that moment he turned pale and began to sink, and Jonathan was hurried on, but saw, soon after, one of the wretches coming up with his little brother's scalp in his bloody hand.
A Mrs. Martin, with a young child aged five, neighbors of the Alders, were taken at the same time, but finding the child burdensome, the sav- ages soon killed and scalped it also. The last member of her family was thus destroyed, and the poor mother screamed out in an agony of grief. Upon this, one of the cruel savages caught her by the hair and, drawing the edge of his knife across her forehead, cried "scalp ! scalp !" with the hope of stilling her cries. But, indifferent to life, she continued her screams, and then they procured some switches and whipped her until she was silent.
The next morning Jonathan, not having risen, through over-fatigue,
729
JONATHAN ALDER CAPTURED.
saw, as his face was to the north, the shadow of a man's arm with an uplifted tomahawk. He turned about, and there stood an Indian ready for the fatal blow. Upon this the savage let down his arm and com- menced feeling the boy's head. He afterwards told Alder it had been his intention to have killed him; but, as he turned, he looked so smiling that he could not strike, and on feeling his head and noticing that his hair was very black, the thought struck him that if he could only get him to his tribe, he would make of him a good Indian.
After crossing the Ohio they killed a bear, and remained four days to dry the meat for packing. He was now taken to a Shawnee village on Mad river, and forced to run the gauntlet formed by young children armed with switches. He was not hurt, and soon after was adopted into an Indian family.
His Indian mother washed him thoroughly with soap and water having herbs in it, and dressed him in leggins, moccasins and breech- clout. Jonathan was at first very homesick. Everything was strange. He could not speak a word of Indian; their food disagreed with him, and for more than a month he used to go and sit under a big walnut and cry for hours. His father was a chief, Succohanos, his mother's name was Whinecheoh, and the daughters were called by the English names of Mary, Hannah and Sally. The parents were old people who had lost a son, and Alder was to take his place. They took pity on him, and did all possible to comfort him. His Indian sister, Sally, however, treated him like a slave, and when out of humor called him bad names.
Jonathan lived for a while with Mary, the wife of Colonel Lewis, a noted Shawnee chief. "In the Fall of the year," says he, "the Indians would generally collect at our camp, evenings, to talk over their hunt- ing expeditions. I would sit up to listen, and frequently fall asleep. After the Indians left, Mary would fix my bed, and, with Colonel Lewis, would carefully take me up and carry me to it. On these occa- sions they would often say, supposing me to be asleep, 'poor little fel- low, we have sat up too long for him and he has fallen asleep on the cold ground;' and then how softly they would lay me down and cover me up! Oh, never can I express the affection I had for these two persons."
Jonathan, with other lads, went into Mad river to bathe, and once came near drowning. He was taken out senseless and was some time in recovering. The boys, after bringing him to, gave him a silver buckle not to tell on them, and he did not. When Alder had learned the language he became more content, and said he would have lived very happily had it not been for several years of fever and ague. The chief
730
OUR WESTERN BORDER.
food was game and hominy, with honey and sugar. When he was old enough, a musket was given him to learn to hunt. He used, at first, to follow the water courses and shoot mud turtles. Occasionally he killed a raccoon or a wild turkey, and received great praise from the Indians, who told him he would make a great hunter.
In the June after he was taken, occurred Crawford's defeat. He de- scribes the anxiety of the squaws when the men had gone to battle, and their joy on the return of the spoil-laden victors. He defends Simon Girty from the charge of being the instigator of Crawford's tortures, and asserts that he could not possibly have saved Crawford's life, be- cause he, Girty, had no influence among the Delawares. He was at the Mack-a-chack towns when they were destroyed by Logan in 1786; went to Kentucky on a horse-stealing expedition, and remained with the Indians until after Wayne's victory. He now lived on Big Darby, and, when white settlers first came there, he could scarcely speak one word of English. He was then about twenty-four years of age, fifteen of which had been passed with the Indians.
Alder married a squaw and began to farm like the whites. He kept horses, cows, hogs, &c .; sold milk and butter to the Indians, horses and pork to the whites, and soon began to accumulate property. He was shortly able to hire white laborers, but becoming dissatisfied with his squaw-a cross, peevish woman-he wished to wife among the whites and farm like them. He now made inquiries for his white relations, but was at a loss to know even what State he came from. While talk- ing with a John Moore once, he told him he was captured somewhere near a place called Green Briar. Moore then asked him if he could re- call the names of any of his old neighbors. After a little reflection, Alder said, "Yes, a family of Gulions lived close by us." Upon this Moore dropped his head, muttering to himself, " Gulion, Gulion," and then said, " Oh, yes ; my father and I were out in that country and we stopped at their house one night ; if your people are living I can find them."
Moore went to Wythe county, Va., and inquired for the Alder fam- ily, but they had moved. He advertised for them, stating where Jona- than was to be found and then returned. Alder now gave up all hope, but some time after he was at Franklinton, O., and was informed there was a letter at the post office for him. It was from his brother Paul, stating he had read the advertisement and that his mother and brothers were still alive. Alder now prepared to go back to Virginia, but first sepa- rated from his Indian wife, dividing the property equally; but she was very hard at a bargain, and he ended by giving her nearly all. She then claimed $200 more in silver, that he had saved. Alder says,
731
THE CAPTIVITY OF TWO LITTLE BROTHERS.
" I saw I could not get along without a fuss, and told her that if she would promise never to trouble me again she might have it."
Moore accompanied him to his brother's house. They arrived on horseback, pretending they were entire strangers, and inquired who lived there. "I had concluded," says Alder, "not to make myself known for some time, and eyed my brother very close but did not recollect his features. I had always thought I should have recognized my mother by a mole on her face. In the corner sat an old lady who I supposed was her, although I could not tell, for when I was taken her head was as black as a crow, and now it was almost perfectly white. Two young women were present, who eyed me very close, and I heard one of them whisper to the other, 'He looks very much like Mark,' (my brother.) I saw they were about to discover me, and accordingly turned my chair around to my brother and said, 'You say your name is Alder.' 'Yes,' he replied, 'my name is Paul Alder.' ' Well,' I rejoined, ' my name is Alder, too.' Now it is hardly necessary to describe my feelings at that time, but when I thus disclosed my name, he rose to shake hands with me, so overjoyed that he could scarcely utter a word, and my old mother ran, threw her arms around me, while tears rolled down her aged cheeks. The first words she spoke, after she grasped me in her arms, were, 'How you have grown ! I am proud to own you for my son !' We passed the day in conversation. My brothers, Mark and John, were sent for, and we all had a happy time."
THE CAPTIVITY OF TWO LITTLE BROTHERS.
Dr. Denny, of Pittsburgh, persuaded the venerable James Lyon, of Beaver, Pa., then in his 71st year, to give a narrative of his boyish cap- tivity among Indians, from which we condense, as follows: In 1782 his sister Mary lived on Turtle Creek, Pa., with his father, (the mother be- ing dead,) and made for him and his brother Eli pin-hooks, with which they were busy fishing in the creek for minnows, when they heard a noise like the tramping of horses. Eli told James to go up the bank to see what it was. He ran up and, looking towards the house saw Indians jumping the fence and coming towards them, and had scarce time to halloo to Eli before the savages were upon them.
A large Indian, who had their father's bloody shirt and hunting frock on, and two scalps hanging to his girdle, caught James, while Eli ran up the opposite bank, striking the foremost Indian with his fishing rod. The
732
OUR WESTERN BORDER.
enraged savage now pulled out his tomahawk when Eli grew quiet. James, too, had made a terrible hullabaloo when first seized by the Indian, but the sight of the brandished tomahawk quieted him also. The redskins seized the two boys and, lifting them almost off the ground, carried them to the hills above Dirty Camp, where they were joined by another party of Indians, with three stolen horses of Mr. Lyon. On the small black mare was a feather bed, on which Fli was seated in front and James behind him.
That evening they stole from a waste field they were passing a roan mare, and after a while one of the Indians climbed up a tree which was leaning against another, looked around and then motioned the lads to get off at once. They all then squatted for some time, till the danger, what- ever it was, was past, and the direction was changed ; the children being too young to tell what course they were traveling. They soon, however, struck a river, supposed to be the Allegheny, where all the horses were driven in to swim across; but the roan mare, proving refractory, was cruelly tomahawked, and the best of her cut into steaks and broiled. Some of it was handed to us; it was tough eating, but we were very hungry and glad to get it. They now examined the murdered Mr. Lyon's pocket book, and seemed specially pleased at the jingle of some gold guineas therein contained. The next day the river was crossed on a raft, the horses (all but Long's, which ran off and safely reached its old quarters,) having first been hunted up.
On that night, as well as the whole day after, a severe storm of rain and wind prevailed. A shelter was allowed James, but Eli was com- pelled to weather it outside. Both boys spent much of that night in tears over their forlorn situation. The next day their hair was all cut off, both lads resisting strenuously, which seemed mightily to. please their captors. James' hair was unusually long and white, which pro- cured him the name of O-pon-to-pos, or White-head. The first town they came to they were treated, before entering, with the horrid spec- tacle of their father's and sister's scalps stretched on small hoops and then suspended to long poles. The villagers came out to meet them, and escorted their party and the gory trophies in.
Among those who visited them was a white man, who took little James on his knee, caressed him and treated him so kindly that when he came to go the boy wanted to go with him, and could only be pacified by the promise that he would come and see him again, but that was the last he ever saw of him ; he was told by his brother that the white man was Simon Girty. They soon reached a larger town, were put on two horses, and compelled again to run the gauntlet, an Indian pointing out to them the council house. Eli whipped his horse with a ramrod, and reached the house without a touch, but not so with
733
THE CAPTIVITY OF TWO LITTLE BROTHERS.
James, who was dragged off his horse by boys of about his own size, and severely kicked, cuffed and beaten, but finally succeeded in reach- ing his brother. There they remained several days, and then moved to White Woman's Creek, O., where James was adopted into a respectable Indian family.
We may mention two or three interesting incidents of this boy's cap- tivity. He had a little Indian brother of about his own age and size, and a brother of his Indian father, badly crippled by a bear, used to set the two little ones to wrestle, which sometimes ended in a fight, when they would be parted. One time they both had knives, while husking corn, and when James had laid his knife down, his Indian brother slipped it away and put his own in its place. On making a dash for his own knife again he was severely cut, (the scar of which lasted during life,) for which his brother received a severe drubbing from the mother.
At another time their father brought in a deer, and after cutting off a steak, left his hunting knife on the ground. His little Indian brother had been amusing himself by getting splinters from the fire and burning James' naked hips. The white boy told him he would whip him if he did not desist, and on his continuing, James made at him, clinched and threw him, but, unfortunately, on the point of the knife, which entered above the little lad's hips, near the backbone, inflicting a severe wound. Seeing his Indian father reaching for his tomahawk, James ran down to the creek and hid under some. rocks. It was in Winter, with much snow on the ground, and there the little fellow lay until night, when, feeling very cold, he crept out and saw his mother going for water. She made signs for him to come to her, and insisted on his going back to the camp, which he did, very much frightened, expecting he would be killed, or, at least, severely chastised. When he went in, however, no one had an angry word to say to him. He went up to where his little brother was lying in great pain, and being sincerely sorry for the acci- dent, he was pardoned.
At another time he went to live with a sister who had married, who used him cruelly, striking him on the head with the back of a scalping knife so violently as to make it bleed profusely. Once, when she went to the creek to wash, she took hold of him and threw him into the creek, holding him under water until he would have been drowned, had not her husband just then returned from a hunt and witnessed the whole proceeding. His mother, coming that day to pay him a visit, noticed blood on his hair, and asked what did it. On being told she was ex- ceedingly angry, and gave her daughter a terrible scolding, and took him home with her.
734
OUR WESTERN BORDER.
When told that, by treaty just made, he was to be sent back to his white relatives, James had to be coaxed to go, but on being informed he would again see his brother, consented, and was delivered up at Fort McIntosh, whence he reached his own old home safely. His sister Mary, who had not been killed, as the brothers supposed, told him of the agonies she endured when she missed them and saw moccasin prints in the mud. She ran at once and gave the alarm at Rayburn's garri- son, and thus escaped herself. Lyon, in his narrative, neglects to state what became of his brother Eli, but it is presumed that he also was re- turned in safety to his friends.
FRANCIS DOWNING SAVED BY A BEAR.
In August, 1786, young Francis Downing was living in a fort, where, subsequently, some iron works were erected by Mr. Jacob Myers, which are now known by the name of Slate Creek works. About the 16th, a young man belonging to the fort called upon Downing, and requested his assistance in hunting for a horse which had strayed away on the pre- ceding evening. Downing readily complied, and the two friends traversed the woods in every direction, until at length, towards evening, they found themselves in a wild valley, at a distance of six or seven miles from the fort. Here Downing became alarmed, and repeatedly assured his elder companion, (whose name was Yates,) that he heard sticks cracking behind them, and was confident that Indians were dogging them. Yates, being an experienced hunter, and from habit grown indifferent to the dangers of the woods, diverted himself freely at the expense of the lad, often inquiring at what price he rated his scalp, and offering to insure it for sixpence.
Downing, however, was not so easily satisfied. He observed that, in whatever direction they turned, the same ominous sound continued to haunt them, and as Yates still treated his fears with the most perfect in- difference, he determined to take his measures upon his own responsi- bility. Gradually slackening his pace, he permitted Yates to advance twenty or thirty steps in front of him, and immediately after descend- ing a gentle hill, he suddenly sprang aside and hid himself in a thick cluster of whortleberry bushes. Yates, who at that time was perform- ing some woodland ditty to the full extent of his lungs, was too much pleased with his own voice to attend either to Downing or the Indians, and was quickly out of sight. Scarcely had he disappeared, when
735
FRANCIS DOWNING SAVED BY A BEAR.
Downing, to his unspeakable terror, beheld two savages put aside the stalks of a canebrake and look out cautiously in the direction which Yates had taken. Fearful that they had seen him step aside, he deter- mined to fire upon them and trust to his heels for safety, but so un- steady was his hand, that in raising his gun to his shoulder it went off before he had taken aim. He lost no time in following its example, and after having run fifty yards, he met Yates, who, alarmed at the re- port, was hastily retracing his steps.
It was not necessary to inquire what was the matter. The enemy were in full view, pressing forward with great rapidity, and " devil take the hindmost " was the order of the day. Yates would not out- strip Downing, but ran by his side, although in so doing he risked both of their lives. The Indians were well acquainted with the country, and soon took a path that diverged from the one which the whites followed at one point and rejoined it at another, bearing the same relation to it that the string does to the bow. The two paths were at no point dis- tant from each other more than one hundred yards, so that Yates and Downing could easily see the enemy gaining rapidly upon them. They reached the point of reunion first, however, and quickly came to a deep gully, which it was necessary to cross or retrace their steps. Yates cleared it without difficulty, but Downing, being much ex- hausted, fell short, falling with his breast against the opposite brink, rebounded with violence, and fell at full length on the bottom.
The Indians crossed the ditch a few yards below him, and, eager for the capture of Yates, continued the pursuit, without appearing to notice Downing. The latter, who at first had given himself up for lost, quickly recovered his strength, and began to walk slowly along the ditch, fearing to leave it lest the enemy should see him. As he ad- vanced, however, the ditch became more shallow, until at length it ceased to protect him at all. Looking around cautiously, he saw one of the Indians returning, apparently in quest of him. Unfortunately, he had neglected to reload his gun while in the ditch, and, as the Indian instantly advanced upon him, he had no resource but flight. Throw- ing away his gun, which was now useless, he plied his legs manfully in ascending a long ridge which stretched before him, but the Indian gained upon him so rapidly that he lost all hope of escape. Coming, at length, to a large poplar which had been blown up by the roots, he ran along the body of the tree upon one side, while the Indian followed it upon the other, doubtless expecting to intercept him at the root.
But here the supreme dominion of fortune was manifested. It hap- pened that a large she bear was suckling her cubs in a bed she had made at the root of the tree, and as the Indian reached that point first, she
736
OUR WESTERN BORDER.
instantly sprang upon him and a prodigious uproar took place. The Indian yelled and stabbed with his knife, the bear growled and saluted him with one of her most endearing " hugs;" while Downing, fer- vently wishing her success, ran off through the woods, without waiting to see the end of the struggle. Downing reached the fort in safety, and found Yates reposing after a hot chase, having eluded his pursuers and gained the fort two hours before him. On the next morning they collected a party and returned to the poplar tree, but no traces either of the Indian or bear were to be found. They both probably escaped with their lives, although not without injury.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.