History of Vernon County, Wisconsin, together with sketches of its towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 49

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Springfield, Union
Number of Pages: 814

USA > Wisconsin > Vernon County > History of Vernon County, Wisconsin, together with sketches of its towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens > Part 49

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Impostor .- Among the books which I pur- chased for Gen. Cass, at New York, was the narrative of one John Dunn Hunter. I remember being introduced to the man, at one of my vis- its to New York, by Mr. Carter. Ile appeared to be one of those anomalous persons of easy good nature, without much energy or will, and little or no moral sense, who might be made a tool of. It seems no one in New York was taken in by him, but having wandered over to Lou- don, the booksellers found him a good subject for a book, and some hack there, with consider- able eleverness, made him a pack-horse for car- rying a load of stuff about America's treatment of the Indians. It was called a "captivity," and he was made to play the part of an adventurer

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among the Indians, somewhat after the manner of John Tanner. Cass reviewed the book on our route and at the Prairie for the North American, in an article which created quite a sensation, and will be remembered for its force and eloquence. Ile first read to me some of these glowing sentences while on the portages of the Fox. It was continued, during the leis- ure hours of the conferences, and finally the critique was finished, after his visiting the place and the person, in Missouri, to which Hunter had alluded as his sponsor in baptism. The man denied all knowledge of him. Hunter was utterly demolished, and his book shown to be as great a tissue of misrepresentation as that of Salmanazar himself.

August 21st the party separates. I had deter- mined to return to the Sault by way of Lake Superior, through Chippewa river. But, owing to the murder of Finley and his men at its mouth in 1824, I found it impossible to engage men at Prairie du Chien, to take that route. I determined, therefore, to go up the Wisconsin, and by the way of Green bay. For this pur- pose, I purchased a light canoe, engaged men to paddle it, and laid in provisions and stores to last to Green Bay. Having done so, I em- barked about 3 o'clock r. M., descending the ma- jestic Mississippi, with spirits enlivened by the hope of soon rejoining friends far away. At the same time, Mr. Holliday left for the same des- tination, in a separate canoe. On reaching the mouth of the Wisconsin, we entered that broad tributary, and found the current strong. We passed the point of rocks called Petit Gris, and encamped at Grand Gris.

Several hours previous to leaving the Prairie, a friend handed me an enveloped packet, say- ing, "Read it when you get to the mouth of the Wisconsin." I had no conception what it re- lated to, but felt great anxiety to reach the place mentioned. I then opened it, and read as follows: "I cannot separate from you without expressing my grateful acknowledgements for the honor you have done me, by connecting my

name with your Narrative of Travels in the Cen- tral Portions of the Mississippi Valley, &c." Nothing could have been more gratifying or un- expected.

22d. A fog in the valley detained us till 5 o'clock A. M. After traveling about two hours, Mr. Holliday's canoe was crushed against a rock. While detained in repairing it, I ordered my cook to prepare breakfast. It was now 9 o'clock, when we again proceeded, till the heat of noon much affected the men. We pushed our canoes under some overhanging trees, where we found fine clusters of ripe grapes.

In going forward, we passed two canoes of Menomonies, going out on their fall hunt, on the Chippewa river. These people have no hunting grounds of their own, and are obliged to the courtesy of neighboring Nations for a subsistence. They are the most erratie of all our tribes, and may be said to be almost no- madie. We had already passed the canoes, when Mr. Lewis, the portrait painter, called out stoutly behind us, from an island in the river, "Oh! ho!" I did not know but there was some other breaking of the canoe, or worse dis- aster, and directed the men tojput back. "See, see," said he, "that fellow's nose! Did you ever see such a protuberance?" It was one of the Menomonees from Butte des Morts, with a glob- ular irregular lump on the end of his nose, half as big as a man's fist. Lewis' artistic risibles were at their height, and he set to work to draw him. I could think of nothing appropriate, but Sterne and Strasbourg.

23d. A heavy fog detained us at Caramanis village till near 6 A. M. The fog, however, still continued, so thick as to conceal objects at twenty yards distance. We consequently went cautiously. Both this day and yesterday we have been constantly in sight of Indian canoes on their return from the treaty. Wooden canoes are exclusively used by the Winnebagoes. They are pushed along with poles.

We passed a precipitous range of hills near Pine creek, on one of which is a cave, called by

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HISTORY OF VERNON COUNTY.

our boatmen, L'diable au Port. This supersti- tion of peopling dens and other dark places with the "arch fiend," is common. If the "old serpent" has given any proofs to the French boatmen of his residence here, I shall only hope that he will confine himself to this river,and not go about troubling quiet folks in the land of the lakes.

At Pine river we went inland about a mile to see an old mine, probably the remains of French enterprise, or French credulity. But all its golden ores had flown, probably frightened off by the old fellow of L'diable au Port. We saw only pits dug in the sand overgrown with trees.

Near this spot in the river, we overtook Shingabowossin and his party of Chippewas. They had left the prairie on the same day that we did, but earlier. They had been in some dread of the Winnebagoes, and stopped on the island to wait for us.

In passing the channel of Detour, we observed many thousand tons of white rock lying in the river, which had lately fallen from the bank, leaving a solid perpendicular precipice. This rock, banks and ruins is like all the Wisconsin valley rocks-a very white and fine sandstone.

We passed five canoes of Menomonees, on their way to hunt on Chippewa river, to whom I presented some powder, lead and flour. They gave me a couple of fish, of the kind called pe-can-o by the Indians.

24th. We were again detained by the fog, till half past 5 A. M., and after a hard day's fatiguing toil, I encamped at 8 o'clock P. M. on a sandy island in the center of the Wisconsin. The water in the river is low, and spreads stragglingly over a wide surface. The very bed of the river is moving sand. While supper was preparing I took from my trunk a towel, clean shirt and cake of soap, and spent half an hour in bathing in the river upon the clean yellow sand. After this grateful refreshment, I sank sweetly to repose in my tent.

25th. The fog dispersed earlier this morning than usual. We embarked a few minutes after

4 A. M., and landed for breakfast at 10. The weather now was quite sultry, as indeed it has been during the greater part of every day since leaving Tipesage- i. e. the Prairie. Our route this day carried us through the most picturesque and interesting part of the Wisconsin, called the Highlands or River Hills. Some of these hills are high, with precipitous faces towards the river. Others terminate in round grassy knobs, with oaks dispersed about the sides. The name is supposed to have been taken from this feature. * Generally speaking, the country has a bald and barren aspect. Not a tree has apparently been cut upon its banks, and not a village is seen to relieve the tedium of an unim- proved wilderness. The huts of an Indian locality seem "at random cast." I have already said these conical and angular hills present masses of white sandstone wherever they are precipitous. The river itself is almost a moving mass of white and yellow sand, broad, clear, shallow, and abounding in small woody islands and willowy sandbars.

While making these notes I have been com- pelled to hold my book, pencil and umbrella, the latter being indispensible to keep off the almost trophical fervor of the sun's rays. As the umbrella and book must be held in one hand, you may judge that I have managed with some difficulty; and this will account to yon for many uncouth letters and much dis- jointed orthography. Between the annoyance of insects, the heat of the sun, and the difficulties of the way, we had incessant employment.

At 3 o'clock P. M. we put ashore for dinner in a very shaded and romantic spot. Poetic images were thick about us. We sat upon mats spread upon a narrow carpet of grass between the river and a high perpendicular cliff. The latter threw its broad shade far beyond us. This strip of land was not more than ten feet wide, and had any fragments of rock fallen, they would have crushed us. But we saw no reason

*Sin, the terminal syllable, is clearly from the Algonquin- Os-sin, a stone. The French added the letter o, which is the regular local form of the word, agreeably to the true Indian.

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to fear such an event, nor did it at all take from the relish of our dinner. Green moss had covered the face of the rock and formed a soft velvet covering, against which we leaned. The broad and cool river ran at our feet. Overhang- ing trees formed a grateful bower around us. Alas, how are those to be pitied who prefer palaces built with human hands to such seques- tered scenes. What perversity is there in the human understanding to quit the delightful and peaceful abodes of nature, for noisy towns and dusty streets.

To me more dear, congenial to my heart,

One native charm than all the gloss of art."

At a late hour in the evening we reached the Wisconsin portage, and found Dr. Wood, U. S. A., encamped there. He had arrived a short time before us, with four Indians and one Cana- dian in a canoe, on his way to St. Peter's. He had a mail in his trunk, and I had reason to believe I should receive letters, but to my sore disappointment I found nothing. I invited Dr. Wood to supper, having some ducks and snipes to offer in addition to my usual stock of solids, such as ham, venison and buffalo tongues.

ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI IN 1829.

Galena stands on the land we afterwards pur- chased of the Indians, and is the largest town in Illinois. When we arrived there it had been settled about three years. It contained several taverns, a considerable number of stores, abont a dozen lawyers, and four or five physicians, with little to do, as the country is healthy. There were three religious congregations in the place -Methodists, Roman Catholics and Presbyte- rians. The town is built on the side hill, in the form of a crescent, on the north side of Fever river, and contains, perhaps, 1,000 inhabitants. It is a seat of justice of Jo Daviess Co., Ill., and is situated in latitude about 42 degrees, 30 minutes north. It con- tains at all times, very large quantities of lead, brought here either as rent to the government, or for sale to the merchants. The superintend- ent of the mines and his assistant, Maj. Camp-

bell, live bere. The latter gentleman and his amiable and interesting lady had been with ns on our passage from St. Louis, and they were happy to find themselves at the end of as dis- agreeable a journey as was ever made on these waters.

Numerous groceries appeared in the town, to us, and two billiard tables were occupied by persons who wished to amuse themselves at billiards.

Mr. James Barnes, formerly of Chillicothe, Ohio, kept an excellent boarding house, and I found many old acquaintances in the town, enjoying the best of health, and they appeared cheerful and happy.

Here we learned that a large body of Indians had already been assembled at Prairie du Chien, for some time, and were in readiness to meet us. Knowing the necessity of supplying them with food, that ours would not reach us for some time yet, and knowing this to be the last opportunity we should find to purchase any food, we purchased 500 bushels of corn, and loading all we could convey, we left this beauti- ful town on the next day, and departed for our final destination, where we arrived about the middle of July, 1829.

As soon as we were discovered by our red friends, a few miles below the fort, opposite to their encampment, they fired into the air about 1,500 rifles, to honor us. Our powder had become wet, and, to our extreme mortification and regret, we could not answer them by our cannon. Having fired their arms, some ran on foot, some rode on their small horses furiously along over the prairie to meet us where we landed. Amidst the motley group of thousands, of all ages, sexes, classes of society, colors and conditions of men, women and children, who met us on the wharf-Nawkaw and Hoochope- kah, with their families, eagerly seized my hand, and I was happy, indeed, to meet them here. During twenty years I had seen them several times, and they recognized me in a moment, among the crowd, and assured me of

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HISTORY OF VERNON COUNTY.

their friendship and good wishes. These chiefs of the Winnebagoes and their families pressed around me, and continued close by me until we reached the tavern where we went. There we entered into a long conversation, and they in- troduced me to their red friends. I assured them of my ardent friendship, and that they and their people should be dealt with, not only justly but liberally : that the President, their great father, was their friend, a warrior like them, and never would do them any injury : that I wished them all to remember what I now told them, and when we finally parted, if my solemn promises thus voluntarily made to them had not been kept to the very letter, I wished them to publicly tell me so. Shaking me heartily by the hand, and assuring me of their friendship, they then appealed to Col. Menard, who heartily agreed with me, in assuring them of our good intentions towards them.

Dr. Wolcott, the agent for the Chippewas, Ottawas and Pottawattamies, here met us. and he had been at incredible pains to get his Indians here, where they had been for nearly a month, perhaps. Mr. Kinzy, the sub-agent of the Winnebagoes, whose sub-agency is located at Fort Winnebago, had also come, and with him all the principal persons of that Nation, residing in that direction.

All the Indians with whom we were sent to treat, were represented on the ground, and all that was wanting to begin our councils we urged forward with all the energy that the officers of the government and their numerous friends could muster. The next day, in com- pany with Gen. Street, the agent of the Winne- bagoes, resident here, several sub-agents and interpreters, I met the principal men of the Winnebagoes, and we impressed upon them the necessity of keeping their young men under subjection, and arranged with them the outlines of the manner in which our business should be conducted. The talk was a long one and oc-

cupied the afternoon. Gen. Street was very zealous in the service of the government.

Gen. McNeil and his officers at the fort erected a council shade, near the fort, and in about three days we were ready to hold a pub- lic council, when Dr. Wolcott's Indians informed me that they could not meet in public council until an Indian was buried, and inquired of me if I objected to the burial, to which 1 replied that I could not object to the burial, certainly. On the next day, to my regret, I learned they would not assemble in council until the Indian was buried, and again inquired, whether I was willing to have the person buried, to which question I replied in the affirmative, when I was informed that the relatives of the deceased would not consent to the burial of the murdered person until they had received a horse, as the compensation for his death. Understanding the difficulty at last, the commissioners gave the horse, the deceased was buried, and the Indians agreed to meet in council next day.

1 took some pains to get the murderer and the relatives of the deceased together, in order to have a perfect reconciliation between them. They shook hands very cordially in appearance, but the relatives of the deceased person informed nie privately afterwards, that, as soon as the murderer got home with his horse and goods, they would kill him and take his property, which he could better keep than they could until then. If I am correctly informed, they did as they assured me they would, after their arrival in their own country. So that compounding for the murderer only procrastinated for a time the punishment of the crime.

When everything was in readiness for the opening of the council, the Indians of all the tribes and Nations on the treaty ground attended, and requested to have translated to them, sever- ally, what we said to each tribe, which being assented to on our part, the Winnebagoes, the Chippewas, Ottawas, Pottawattamies, Sioux, Sauks, Foxes and Monomonees, half-breeds, the officers from the fort, the Indian agents, sub-

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HISTORY OF VERNON COUNTY.

agents, interpreters, and a great concourse of strangers from every city in the Union; and even from Liverpool, London and Paris, were in attendance. The commissioners sat on a raised bench facing the Indian chiefs; on each side of them stood the officers of the army iu full dress, while the soldiers, in their best attire, appeared in bright array on the sides of the council shade. The ladies belonging to the officers' families, and the best families in the Prairie, were seated directly behind the com- missioners, where they could see all that passed and hear all that was said. Behind the princi- pal Indian chiefs sat the common people-first the men, then the women and children, to the number of thousands, who listened in breathless and death-like silence to every word that was uttered. The spectacle was grand and morally sublime in the highest degree to the Nations of red men who were present, and when our pro- position to sell all their country to their Father had been delivered to them, they requested an exact copy of it in writing, the request was instantly complied with, and the council broke. np. Next day we addressed the Winnebagoes, as we had the Chippewas, etc. the day before, and at their request gave them a copy of our speech.

After counciling among themselves, the Chip- pewas, etc., answered favorably as to a sale, though they would do nothing yet until they had fixed on their terms.

The Winnebagoes appeared in council and delivered many speeches to us. They demanded the $20,000 worth of goods. "Wipe out your debt," was their reply, "before you run in debt again to us."

Our goods, owing to the low stage of the water, had not arrived yet, and the Indians feared we did not intend to fulfil Gov. Cass' agreement of the year before. When our goods did arrive, and they saw them, they then changed their tone a little; but in the meantime, great uneasiness existed, and I was often seriously advised by Nawkaw and other friends to go

into the fort, as Gen. McNiel had done. Col. Menard's ill health had compelled him to leave the ground and go to Gen. Street's, five miles (the General calls it three), from the council house. Unless we left the ground, we were told by the Winnebagoes, that they "would use a little switch upon us." In plain English, they would assassinate the whole of us out of the fort. Two hundred warriors under Keokuk and Morgan, of Sauks and Foxes, arrived and began their war dance for the United States, and they brought word that thirty steamboats with can- non and United States troops, and 400 warriors of their own, were near at hand. The Winne- bagoes were silenced by this intelligence, and by demonstrations, not misunderstood by them.

When Keokuk arrived, he brought two deserters from the garrison here, whom he had made prisoners on his way up the river. Quas- quawma and his son-in-law, Tia-ma, came with Keokuk. It was a season of great joy with me, who placed more reliance on these friendly warriors than on all our forces. Good as our officers were, our soldiers of the army were too dissipated and worthless to be relied on one moment. Taking Keokuk aside and alone, I told him in plain English all I wanted of him, what I would do for him, and what I expected from him and his good officers. He replied in good English: "I understand you sir, perfectly, and it shall all be done." It was all done faithfully, and he turned the tide in our favor.

The goods arrived and also our provisions; Col. Menard's and Gen. McNiel's health were restored and they appeared again at the council house, and everything wore a new aspect. They approved of all I had done in their temporary absence.

On the 29th day of July, 1829, we concluded our treaty with the Chippewas, Ottawas and Pottawattamies.

On the 1st day of August a treaty was con- eluded with the Winnebagoes.

So the treaties were executed at last, and about 8,000,000 of acres of land added to our

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domain, purchased from the Indians. Taking the three tracts, ceded, and forming one whole, it extends from the upper end of Rock Island to the mouth of the Wisconsin; from latitude 41 degrees, 30 minutes, to latitude 48 degrees, 15 minutes, on the Mississippi. Following the meanderings of the river, it is called 240 miles from south to north. It extends along the Wis- consin and Fox rivers, from west to east, so as to give us a passage across the country from the Mississippi to Lake Michigan. The south part of the purchase extends from Rock Island to Lake Michigan south of the Wisconsin, the Indians now own only reservations, where they live, which, as soon as the white people settle on all the ceded lands, will be sold to us, and the Indians will retire above the Wisconsin, or cross the Mississippi, where the bear, the beaver, the deer and the bison invite them. The United States now own all the country on the east side of the Mississippi, from the Gulf of Mexico to the mouth of the Wisconsin.

When I have crossed Rock river, atter hav- ing passed over the interior of the ceded coun- try, I will describe it more particularly.

It remains for me to make a few remarks upon the country along the Mississippi from Fort Edwards upward, and briefly deseribe Prairie du Chien.

Ascending the Mississippi, the country ap- peared to rise up out of the river at Fort Ed- wards, and the hills assume a greater elevation, still, at Du Buque's mine and tomb not far from Galena. From thence upwards, the bot- tom lands are narrow, the river turns towards the northwest and becomes very crooked, bounded by high hills. Cassville, thirty miles below Prairie du Chien, stands on a narrow bottom, where an opening into the mineral country, in the direction of Mineral Point, pre- sents itself. This easy passage down to the river has located a town here of a few houses, consisting of a tavern, a storehouse for the lead, belonging to the United States; and here a gov-

ernment sub-agent to collect and receive the government's share of lead resides, Maj. Beal.

Opposite to the mouth of the Wisconsin stands Pike's hill, lofty and abrupt, and just above this place, on the eastern bank of the river, begins the low prairie ground on which Fort Crawford and the village of Prairie du Chien stand. The town begins to show itself three miles above the Wisconsin, and extends upwards about nine miles, where it ends. The river is full of islands, and when at its highest altitude in a freshet is three miles in width, from hill to hill. Originally settled by the French, it was once a place of some importance, as the remains of old cellars and chimneys show. That importance is no more, and proba- bly never will be again. Overflowed by high waters, and but little good land near it, with- out water power, I see little inducement to build up a town here. On the north side of the Wisconsin there is no land on which a town can be located near the Wisconsin, and the south side is preferable for it, where one will, one day, rise up. The town, though, is a seat of justice for a county of Michigan, and perhaps thirty families, besides those belonging to the garrison, reside here. No Indians reside near here, and there is no sort of need of nor pro- priety in having an agency, ete., here for the Winnebagoes, because Fort Winnebago is the proper place for the ageney.

Gen. Street, the agent and near relative of Mr. Barry, the postmaster general, is the pres- ent agent, and his residence, I consider to be about five miles above the fort, though I am aware that Gen. Street's estimated distance is only three miles.

The water found by digging in this prairie is not always good, and that in our well was the worst I ever tasted, operating upon the bowels like glauber salts, and I suffered excessively from using it. Even the food cooked in it af- fected me seriously. The well in the fort is better, and some persons obtain water from springs in the river when it is low. The river

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covers all the town and where the fort is in high water. The Mississippi rising late in the season, and subsiding in the summer solstice, this place must be sickly in summer every year, when a freshet takes such a time to appear. In 1829 there was no such rise in the river, of any amount, and the place was healthy.

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History of Vernon County, Wisconsin, together with sketches of its towns, villages and townships, educational, civil, military and political history; portraits of prominent persons, and biographies of representative citizens, Part 49

Author: Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Springfield, Union Number of Pages: 814

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Springfield, Union
Number of Pages: 814