USA > Virginia > A history of the valley of Virginia, 3rd ed > Part 27
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Such was the wretched condition of our forefathers in making their settlements here. To all their difficulties and privations, the Indian war was a weighty addition. The destructive warfare they were compelled to sustain almost single-handed, because the revolu- tionary contest with England gave full employment for the military strength and resources on the east side of the mountains.
The following history of the poverty, labors, sufferings, man- ners and customs, of our forefathers, will appear like a collection of " tales of olden times," without any garnish of language to spoil the original portraits, by giving them shades of coloring which they did not possess.
I shall follow the order of things as they occurred during the period of time embraced in these narratives, beginning with those rude accommodations with which our first adventurers into this coun- try furnished themselves at the commencement of their establish- ments. It will be a homely narrative, yet valuable on the ground of its being real history.
If my reader, when viewing, through the medium which I here present, the sufferings of human nature in one of its most depressed and dangerous conditions, should drop an involuntary tear, let him not blame me for the sentiment of sympathy which he feels. On the contrary, if he should sometimes meet with a recital calculated to excite a smile or a laugh, I claim no credit for his enjoy- ment. It is the subject matter of the history, and not the his-
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HOUSE FURNITURE AND DIET.
torian, which makes those widely different impressions on the mind of the reader.
In this chapter it is my design to give a brief account of the household furniture and articles of diet which were used by the first inhabitants of our country. A description of their cabins and half-faced camps, and their manner of building them, will be found elsewhere.
The furniture for the table, for several years after the settle- ment of this country, consisted of a few pewter dishes, plates and spoons, but mostly of wooden bowls, trenchers and noggins. If these last were scarce, gourds and hard-shelled squashes made up the deficiency.
The iron pot, knives and forks, were brought from the east side of the mountains, along with the salt and iron, on pack-horses.
These articles of furniture correspond very well with the arti- cles of diet on which they were employed. "Hog and homminy " were proverbial for the dishes of which they were competent parts. Journey-cake and pone were, at the outset of the settlements of the country, the only forms of bread in use for breakfast and din- ner. At supper, milk and mush were the standard dish. When milk was not plenty, which was often the case, owing to the scarci- ty of cattle or the want of proper pasture for them, the substantial dish of homminy had to supply the place of them. Mush was fre- quently eaten with sweetened water, molasses, bear's oil, or the gravey of fried meat.
Every family, besides a little garden for the few vegetables which they cultivated, had another small enclosure containing from half an acre to an acre, which they called a "truck-patch," in which they raised corn for roasting-ears, pumpkins, squashes, beans and potatoes. These, in the latter part of the summer and fall, were cooked with their pork, venison and bear meat, for dinner, and made very wholesome and well-tasted dishes. The stand- ard dinner dish for every time log-rolling, or house-raising and harvest-day came, was a pot-pie, or what in other countries is called "sea-pie." This, besides answering for dinner, served for a part of the supper also, the remainder of it from dinner being eaten with milk in the evening, after the conclusion of the labor of the day.
In our whole display of furniture, the delf, china, and silver were unknown. It did not then, as now, require contributions from the four quarters of the globe to furnish the breakfast table, viz : the silver from Mexico, the coffee from the West Indies, the tea from China, and the delf and porcelain from Europe or Asia. Yet our homely fare, and unsightly cabins and furniture, produced a hardy, veteran race, who planted the first footsteps of society and civilization in the immense regions of the west. Indeed to hardi- hood, bravery and labor, from their early youth, they sustained with manly fortitude the fatigue of the chase, the campaign and
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HOUSE FURNITURE AND DIET.
scout, and with strong arms "turned the wildness into fruitful fields," and have left to their descendants the rich inheritance of an immense empire blessed with peace and wealth.
I well recollect the first time I ever saw a tea-cup and caucer, and tasted coffee. My mother died when I was about six or seven years old, and my father sent me to Maryland with a brother of my grandfather, Mr. Alexander Wells, to school.
At Col. Brown's, in the mountains, (at Stony Creek Glades), I for the first time saw tame geese ; and by bantering a pet gander, I got a severe biting by his bill, and beaten by his wings. I won- dered very much that birds so large and strong should be so much tamer than the wild turkeys. At this place, however, all was right, excepting the large birds which they called geese. The cabin and its furniture were such as I had been accustomed to see in the back- woods, as my country was then called.
At Bedford everything was changed. The tavern at which my uncle put up was a stone house, and to make the change more com- plete, it was plastered in the inside, both to the walls and ceiling. On going into the dining room I was struck with astonishment at the appearance of the house. I had no idea that there was any house in the world which was not built of logs; but here I looked round the house and could see no logs, and above I could see no joists ; whether such things could be made by the hands of man, or had grown so of itself, I could not conjecture. I had not the cour- age to inquire anything about it.
When supper came on, "my confusion was worse confounded." A little cup stood in a bigger one, with some brownish-looking stuff in it, which was neither milk homminy nor broth. What to do with these little cups and the little spoons belonging to them, I could not tell ; and I was afraid to ask anything concerning the use of them.
It was in the time of the war, and the company were giving ac- counts of catching, whipping, and hanging the tories. The word jail frequently occurred. This word I had never heard before ; but I soon discovered its meaning, was much terrified, and supposed that we were in danger of the fate of the tories ; for I thought as we had come from the back woods, it was altogether likely that we must be tories too. For fear of being discovered I dare not utter a single word. I therefore watched attentively to see what the big folks would do with the little cups and spoons. I imitated them, and found the taste of the coffee nauseous beyond anything I ever had tasted in my life ; I continued to drink, as the rest of the com- pany did, with the tears streaming from my eyes, but when it was to end I was at a loss to know, as the little cups were filled immedi- ately after being emptied. This circumstance distressed me very much, as I dare not say I had enough. Looking attentively at the grown persons, I saw one man turn his cup bottom upwards and put his little spoon across it; I observed that his cup was not filled
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HOUSE FURNITURE AND DIET.
again ; I followed his example, and to my great satisfaction, the result as to my cup was the same,
The introduction of delf ware was considered by many of the backwoods people as a culpable innovation. It was too easily broken, and the plates of that ware dulled their scalping and clasp knives ; tea ware was too small for men, but might do for women and children. Tea and coffee were only slops, which in the adage of the day, "did not stick by the ribs." The idea was, they were designated only for persons of quality, who did not labor, or the sick. A genuine backwoodsman would have thought himself dis- graced by showing a fondness for these slops. Indeed, many of them have to to this day very little respect for them.
256
DRESS.
CHAPTER XVIII.
DRESS.
On the frontiers, and particularly among those who are much in the habit of hunting, and going on scouts and campaigns, the dress of the men was partly Indian and partly that of civilized nations.
The hunting shirt was universally worn. This was a kind of loose frock, reaching half way down the thighs, with large sleeves, open before, and so wide as to lap over a foot or more when belted. The cape was large, and sometimes handsomely fringed with a ravel- led piece of cloth of a different color from that of the hunting shirt it- self. The bosom of this dress served as a wallet to hold a chunk of bread, cakes, jerk, tow for wiping the barrel of the rifle, or any other necessary for the hunter or warrior. The belt, which was always tied behind, answered for several purposes besides that of holding the dress together. In cold weather, the mittens, and sometimes the bullet-bag, occupied the front part of it ; to the right side was suspended the tomahawk, and to the left the scalping knife in its leather sheath. The hunting shirt was generally made of linsey, sometimes of coarse linen, and a few of dressed deer skins. These last were very cold and uncomfortable in wet weather. The shirt and jacket were of the common fashion. A pair of drawers or breeches, and leggings, were the dress of the thighs and legs. A pair of moccasons answered for the feet much better than shoes. These were made of dressed deer skin. They were mostly made of a single piece, with a gathering seam along the top of the foot, and another from the bottom of the heel, with gaiters as high as the ankle joint or a little higher. Flaps were left on each side to reach some distance up the legs. These were nicely adapted to the ankles and lower part of the legs by thongs of deer skin, so that no dust, gravel or snow, could get within the moccasons.
The moccasons in ordinary use cost but a few hours labor to make them. This was done by an instrument denominated a moc- cason awl, which was made of the back spring of an old clasp knife. The awl, with its buckhorn handle, was an appendage of every shot pouch strap, together with a roll of buckskin for mending the moc- casons. This was the labor of almost every evening. They were sewed together and patched with deer skin thongs, or wangs as they were commonly called.
257
DRESS.
In cold weather the moccasons were well stuffed with deer's hair or dried leaves, so as to keep the feet comfortably warm ; but in wet weather it was usually said that wearing them was "a decent way of going barefooted ;" and such was the fact, owing to the spongy texture of the leather of which they were made.
Owing to this defective covering of the feet, more than to any other circumstance, the greater number of our hunters and warriors were afflicted with rheumatism in their limbs. Of this disease they were all apprehensive in wet or cold weather, and therefore always slept with their feet to the fire to prevent or cure it as well as they could. This practice unquestionably had a very salutory effect, and prevented many of them from becoming confirmed cripples in early life.
In the latter years of the Indian war our young men became more enamored of the Indian dress throughout, with the exception of the match coat. The drawers were laid aside and the leggins made longer, so as to reach the upper part of the thigh. The Indian breech clout was adopted. This was a piece of linen or cloth nearly a yard long, and eight or nine inches broad. This passed under the belt before and beliind, leaving the ends for flaps, hanging before and behind over the belt. These belts were sometimes ornamented with some coarse kind of embroidery work. The same belts which secured the breech clout, strings which supported the long leggings were attached. When this belt, as was often the case, passed over the hunting shirt, the upper part of the thighs and part of the hips were naked.
The young warrior, instead of being abashed by this nudity, was proud of his Indian-like dress. In some few instances I have seen them go into places of public worship in this dress. Their appearance, however, did not add much to the devotion of the young ladies.
The linsey petticoat and bed gown, which were the universal dress of our women in early times, would make a strange figure in our days. A small home-made handkerchief, in point of elegance, would illy supply the place of that profusion of ruffles with which the necks of our ladies are now ornamented.
They went bare footed in warm weather, and in the cold their feet were covered with moccasons, coarse shoes, or shoe-packs, which would make but a sorry figure besides the elegant morocco slippers often embossed with bullion, which at present ornament the feet of their daughters and granddaughters.
The coats and bed gowns of the women, as well as the hunting shirts of the men, were hung in full display on wooden pegs around the walls of their cabins, so that while they answered in some degree the place of paper-hangings or tapestry, they announced to the stranger as well as neighbor the wealth or poverty of the family in the articles of clothing. This practice has not yet been wholly laid aside among the backwoods families.
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258
DRESS.
The historian would say to the ladies of the present time. Our ancestors of your sex knew nothing of the ruffles, leghorns, curls, combs, rings, and other jewels with which their fair daughters now decorated themselves. Such things were not then to be had. Many of the younger part of them were pretty well grown up before they ever saw the inside of a store room, or even knew there was such a thing in the world, unless by hearsay, and indeed scarcely that.
Instead of the toilet, they had to handle the distaff or shuttle, the sickle or weeding hoe, contented if they could obtain their linsey clothing and cover their heads with a sun bonnet made of a six or seven hundred linen.
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THE FORT.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE FORT.
My reader will understand by this term, not only a place of de- fense, but the residence of a small number of families belonging to the same neighborhood. As the Indian mode of warfare was an indiscriminate slaughter of all ages and both sexes, it was as requis- ite to provide for the safety of the women and children as for that of the men.
The Forts consisted of cabins, block-houses and stockades. A range of cabins commonly formed one side at least of the Fort. Divisions, or partitions of logs, separated the cabins from each other. The walls on the outside were ten or twelve feet high, the slope of the roof being turned wholly inward. A very few of these cabins had puncheon floors ; the greater part were earthen.
The block-houses were built at the angles of the Fort. They projected about two feet beyond the outer walls of the cabins and way stockades. Their upper stories were about eighteen inches every larger in dimensions than the under one, leaving an opening at the commencement of the second story, to prevent the enemy from mak- ing a lodgment under their walls. In some Forts, instead of block- houses, the angles of the Forts were furnished with bastions. A large folding gate made of thick slabs, nearest the spring, closed the Fort. The stockades, bastions, cabins and block-house walls, were furnished with port-holes at proper heights and distances. The whole of the outside was made completely bullet-proof.
It may be truly said that necessity is the mother of inven- tion, for the whole of this work was made without the aid of a single nail or spike of iron, and for this reason, such things were not to be had.
In some places, less exposed, a single block-house with a cabin or two constituted the whole Fort.
Such places of refuge may appear very trifling to those who have been in the habit of seeing the formidable military garrisons of Europe and America ; but they answered the purpose, as the In- dians had no artillery. They seldom attacked, and scarcely ever took one of them.
The families belonging to these Forts were so attached to their own cabins on their farms, that they seldom moved into the Fort in the spring until compelled by some alarm, as they called
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THE FORT.
it ; that is, when it was announced by some murder that the Indians were in the settlement.
The Fort to which my father belonged, was, during the first year of the war, three-quarters of a mile from his farm ; but when this Fort went to decay, and became unfit for defense, a new one was built at his own house. I well remember that when a little boy the family where sometimes waked up in the dead of night by an express with a report that the Indians were at hand. The express came softly to the door or back window, and by a gentle tapping waked the family ; this was easily done, as an habitual fear made us ever watchful and sensible to the slightest alarm. The whole family were instantly in motion ; my father seized his gun and other imple- ments of war ; my step-mother waked up and dressed the children as well as she could ; and being myself the oldest of the children, I had to take my share of the burdens to be carried to the Fort. There was no possibility of getting a horse in the night to aid us in removing to the Fort ; besides the little children, we caught up what articles of clothing and provisions we could get hold of in the dark, for we dare not light a candle or even stir the fire. All this was done with the utmost dispatch and the silence of death ; the greatest care was taken not to awaken the youngest child; to the rest it was enough to say Indian, and not a whimper was heard after- wards. Thus it often happened that the whole number of families belonging to a Fort, who were in the evening at their homes, were all in their little fortress before the dawn of the next morning. In the course of the succeeding day, their household furniture was brought in by parties of the men under arms.
Some families belonging to each Fort, were much less under the influence of fear than others, and who after an alarm had subsided, in spite of every remonstrance would move home, while their more prudent neighbors remained in the Fort. Such families were denom- inated "fool-hardy," and gave no small amount of trouble by creat- ing such frequent necessities of sending runners to warn them of their danger, and sometimes parties of our men to protect them dur- ing their removal.
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CARAVANS.
CHAPTER XX. .
CARAVANS.
The acquisition of the indispensible articles of salt, steel and castings, presented great difficulties to the first settles of the western country. They had 110 stores of any kind, no salt, iron, nor iron works ; nor had they money to make purchases were those articles were to be obtained. Peltry and furs were their only resources, before they had time to raise cattle and horses for sale in the At- lantic States.
Every family collected what peltry and fur they could obtain throughout the year for the purpose of sending them over the moun- tains for barter.
In the fall of the year, after seeding-time, every family formed an association with some of their neighbors for starting the little caravan. A master driver was selected from among them, who was to be assisted by one or more young men, and sometimes a boy or two. The horses were fitted out with pack-saddles, to the hinder part of which was fastened a pair of hobbles made of hickory withs ; a bell and collar ornamented his neck. The bags provided for the conveyance of the salt were filled with feed for the horses; on the journey a part of this feed was left at convenient stages on the way down, to support the return of the caravan. Large wallets, well- filled with bread, jerk, boiled ham and cheese, furnished provision for the drivers. At night, after feeding, the horses, whether put in pasture or turned out in the woods, were hobbled, and the bells were opened. The barter for salt and iron were made first at Balti- more. Frederick, Hagerstown, Oldtown and Cumberland in suc- cession, became the place of exchange. Each horse carried two bushels of alumn salt, weighing eighty-four pounds to the bushel. This, to be sure, was not a heavy load for the horses, but it was enough considering the scanty substance allowed them on their journey.
The common price of a bushel of alumn salt at an early period was a good cow and calf ; and until weight were introduced, the salt was measured into the half bushel by hand as lightly as possi- ble. No one was permitted to walk heavily over the floor while the operation was going on.
The following anecdote will serve to show how little the native sons of the forest knew of the etiquette of the Atlantic cities.
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CARAVANS.
A neighbor of my father, some years after the settlement of the country, had collected a small drove of cattle for the Baltimore mar- ket. Among the hands employed to drive them was one who had never seen any condition of society but that of woodsmen.
At one of their lodging places in the mountain, the landlord and his hired man, in the course of the night, stole two of the bells belonging to the drove, and hid them in a piece of woods.
The drove had not gone far in the morning before the bells were missed, and a detachment went back to recover the stolen bells. The men were found reaping in the field of the landlord ; they were accused of the theft, but denied the charge. The torture of sweat- ing, according to the custom of that time, that is, of suspension by the arms pinioned behind their back, brought a confession. The bells were procured and hung around the necks of the thieves ; in this condition they were driven on foot before the detachment until they overtook the drove, which by this time had gone nine miles. A halt was called and a jury selected to try the culprits. They were condemned to receive a certain number of lashes on the bare back from the hand of each drover. The man above alluded to was the owner of one of the bells. When it came to his turn to use the hickory, "Now," says he to the thief, "You infernal scoundrel, I'll work your jacket nineteen to the dozen. Only think what a rascally figure I should make in the streets of Baltimore without a bell on my horse." The man was in earnest ; having seen no horse used without bells, he thought they were requisite in every situation.
263
HUNTING.
CHAPTER XXI.
HUNTING.
This was an important part of the employment of the early set- tlers of this country. For some years the woods supplied them with the great amount of their subsistence, and with regard to some families, in certain times, the whole of it ; for it was no uncommon thing for families to live several months without a mouthful of bread. It frequently happened that there was no breakfast until it was obtained from the woods. Fur and peltry was the people's money ; they had nothing else to give in exchange for rifles, salt and iron, on this side of the mountains.
The fall and early part of the winter was the season for hunt- ing the deer, and the whole of the winter, including part of the spring, for bears and skinned animals. It was a customary saying that fur is good during every month in the name of which the letter R occurs.
The class of hunters with whom I was best acquainted were those whose hunting rangers were on the western side of the River and at the distance of eight or nine miles from it. As soon as the leaves were pretty well down, and the weather became rainy ac- companied with light snows, these men, after acting the part of husbandmen, so far as the state of warfare permitted them to do so, soon began to feel that they were hunters. They became uneasy at home ; everything about them became disagreeable ; the house was too warm, the feather bed too soft, and even the good wife was not thought for the time being a proper companion ; the mind of the hunter was wholly occupied with the camp and chase.
I have often seen them get up early in the morning at this sea- son, walk hastily out and look anxiously at the woods, and snuff the autumnal winds with the highest rapture, then return into the house and cast a quick and attentive look at the rifle, which was always suspended to a joist by a couple of buck's horns or little forks ; his hunting dog understanding the intentions of his master, would wag his tail, and by every blandishment in his power express readiness to accompany him to the woods.
A day was soon appointed for the march of the little cavalcade to the camp. Two or three horses furnished with pack-saddles were loaded with flour, Indian meal, blankets, and everything else requi- site for the use of the hunter.
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HUNTING.
A hunting camp, or what was called a half-faced cabin, was of the following form ; the back part of it was sometimes a large log ; at the distance of eight or ten feet from this two stakes were set in the ground a few inches apart, and at the distance of eight or ten feet from these two more to receive the ends of the poles for the sides for the camp ; the whole slope of the roof was from the front to the back ; the covering was made of slabs, skin and blankets, or, if in the spring of the year, the bark of hickory or ash trees ; the front was left entirely open ; the fire was built directly before this opening ; the cracks between the logs were filled with moss, the dry leaves for a bed. It is thus that a couple of men in a few hours will construct for themselves a temporary and tolerably comfortable defense from the inclemency of the weather; the beaver, otter, musk- rat and squirrel are scarcely their equals in dispatch in fabricating for themselves a covert from the tempest !
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