■^^1 IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I u m Hi IL25 III 1.4 m M 1.6 PnotogTdphic Sciences Corporation y A {/ &?, ^^< I/. x9 f/. .<5 »^^ iV ^ \\ k *?> 23 WE»T MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 873-4503 o ^f^ '^^^^^i^^^-^fi^^A AJ/ro BAHi). 1 ■' f'lioii (..«.'. .,4.1. sKHy AKf! Aa«»NOf:i) .:>i m *?*****!«!!' t<^ .H INCIDENTS AND EVENTS IN TUB LIFB or GURDOIT SALTOi^STALL HUBBAPvD. OOL.ECTKI, raOM PKRSONAL NARRATIONS AND OTH-R SOCROK.. AND ARRANOEl) BY HIS NEPHEW, Henry E. Hamilto X. 1888. Printers, Engravers and Electrotypers, Chicago. 1 1 CONTENTS. Cliildhood, Engagement with Aiiioricim Fur Coniimny, Mackinaw, ^Farqiictte Cross. . Cliicago and Port Dearborn, Mud Liilie, Isle La Cache and Starved Uociv, Fori (;iar]<, and P^ncounterwith an Indian, St. Louis, Slianb-e-nee, Wa-ba and Che-mo-comon-ess, Tippecanoe Battleground, The Feast of the Dead, Musltcgon Lalve and a Montli of Solitude, Lost in a Snow Storm, Death of Dufrain, Kalamazoo Jliver and Cosa, Wolf Stories, Attacked by an Indian, Alexis St. Martin, - - » Slee[)ing Bear, Pa-pa-ma-ta-be, From the St. Joseph to the Kankakee, Hubbard's Trail, Under the Ice, Trouble with Yellow Head, Winnebago Scare, In the Ohio River, and Letter of Dr. Fithian, Ka-ne-kuck, Address of Hon. Grant Goodricli, Memorial, FAOI 5 10 . 16 81 81 89 4S 46 49 57 60 76 87 95 90 lOfi 113 117 130 125 120 137 138 146 148 101 1«4 171 ^ T..K following !„,«es are partly aHt«l,iosmphi,.aI .nfl partly ..ompile,, from the narrations of Mr H ^ / :r :; ;:;rrr;r "r~ -^^ n'.in> lieiUs through which he passeil an,l H,. ■ l«.«lrfup. which he endured. ™"""' That these event, occurred where g..at centres of Zl "»''' ''-«'' -" <'".-g the lifetime of one man, seems stranger than fiction. SKETCH Ol'' LIFE. OIlII.I)l„M,l)-Km.A(IEMKNT WITH AMEIilCAN ITU CO _ MACKINAW. I was ham in WiiKlMor V'Mi-tiwwif i .. ... vYiim.sdi. >eMliollt, AllKiist 22, 1802. My father was Ehzui- Kul.bai'd, the son of (George Hub l.aRl an „fH, .-,■ in the .var of the Revolution, an,l IhankMil lat,.h. My n.othei- wa.s Abigal .Sa«e, da„shf«r «( (feneral C„n,f,.rt Sage anil Sai'an Hamlin, „f Mi.l.He town, Connectiout. My fir,t fecoUeotion ot event., wa« the great «.'ip.,e of the 8nn about the year 1800, while walking witli mv ...other in the garden. The imp,-e.ssion „,nde upon „,y m>nd by l,e strange and unnatural appeunmce of thin,.s has la.sted to the present time. Tlie whit« sti«e horses hat were passing, to my vision .appeared yellow, and looking „p to my n.other I discovered that her face also appeared yellow, as did all the su.-roundings. I was so tr.ghte„ed I did not recover (rou. it lor some ti.ue I cannot remen.ber at what age I oomn,«nc«d goin- to ^^ho... but the fact of a dislike for books, from t^at tim! > to the age of thirteen, I do not forget. I was always pleading ,« be excused, and my indulgent mother too often gi.,anted my reque.< I was often truant and escaped punishment. ^ .n'^f>f -'T ""' '"' '""''"''^^' '' ^^^^>'-' ^"^ 1-ving enteied into some speculations about the year 1810 in (5) !i 6 the fall of 1812 he lost his property, and my Aunt Saltonstall invited me to her house, and influenced her son-in-law, the Rev. Daniel Huntington, to take me and a boy of about my age to educate. Accordingly, in November of that year, I went to Bridgewater, Massachusetts, and entered upon a course of studies, living in Mr. Huntington's family, where my aunt also resided, I was very deficient in my education, but the winter passed pleasantly and I made fair progress in my studies. My father's misfortunes continued, and he became V ery poor, which I felt so keenly as to make me miserable und discontented. I constantly pleaded to be permitted to return home, and when, in the following winter I learned that my father had fallen into still deeper trouble and had determined to go to Montreal, there to practice his profession, I was inconsolable ; and as I had lost all interest in my studies, I was promised that I should re- turn home in the spring. In the middle of the month of April following I started for my home, and a few days' travel by coach brougnt me to my parents, and about the first of May, 1815, they with their six children, of whom I was the eldest,' started for Canada, On reaching Montreal, my father learned that he could not be admitted to practice, as he was an American citizen, and by a new law of the Dominion a residence of five years would be required before he could be allowed to practice his profession. He, however, took a house and kept boarders, by which, with the fees he earned as consulting attorney, he re- ceived enough to barely support his family, never having a cent to spare beyond their necessary wants. My first winter there I employed in small traffic, buy- ing from Vermont farmers the remnants of their loads of poultry, butter, cheese, etc., and peddling them, from which I realized from eighty to one hundred dollars, all of which went into the family treasury. The capital with which I embarked in this enterprise was twenty-f^ve cents, and was kindly loaned me by Horatio Gates. In the month of April, 1816, my father procured for me a situation in the hardware store of John Frothing- ham, where I received for my services my board only. I was the boy of the store— slept on the counter, worked hard, and attended faithfully to my duties, and thus won the good will of all the clerks. I had but one intimate friend outside of the store, named John Dyde, whom I occasionally visited evenings. His father kept a board- ing-house, where Mr. William Matthews, agent of the American Fur Company, boarded. Mr. John Jacob Astor about this time instructed Mr. Matthews to engage twelve young men as clerks, and one hundred Canadian voyagers, and to purchase a quantity of goods for the Indian trade, to be transferred in hatteaux manned by these voyagers, and to report therewith to Ramsey Crooks, manager at Mackinaw, Michigan. This expedition was to leave Montreal early in May, 1818, and to proceed as rapidly as possible to its place of destination. Visiting my friend Dyde one evening, he told me of this, and that he was trying to prevail upon hvs father and mother to procure for him an engagement with the . Fur Company as one of the twelve clerks. He being then but eighteen years old, his parents opposed it on account of his -outh, and Mr. Matthews also dis- couraged the idea ; yet he continued his efforts, and !i 8 finnlly obtained thdr consent, and informed me of his good fortune. ^ The expedition was the subject of frequent conversa- tions between iis, and I also became desirous of being em- ployed ; my disposition to go increased each time we met and I finally ventured to mention the subject to my father and mother, but they only laughed at the idea, sayinc Mr Matthews would not engage John, as he wanted men and not boys ; that John was not eighteen and I not six- teen. And though I was thus put off, I was not wholly discouraged. Time passed on and April was near at hand One morning John came into the store, his countenance beaming with joy, and announced that Mr. Ma.fchews had promised to take him. "Oh!" said he, -I wish you could go with me, but it is of no use to try. It was hard work to induce Mr. Matthews to take me, because I was not old enough, and besides I am the twelfth, and the youngest by four years. I am to get one hundred dollars advanced to purchase my outfit." I don't know what induced me to make any further effort, but I still felt there was a chance. I could not help crying, and when West, the oldest clerk, inquired the cause, I told him. " Why, Gurdon," he said, "you don't want to go among the Indians. You could not endure the hardships. What a fool you are to think of it. Don't give it another thought. We all like you here. Stick l)y us. and rise as you will be sure to. Mr. Frotliingham has not a word to say against you. He knows you have done your duty, and in time will advance you. So give up the idea." Just then Mr. Frotliingham came in, and, noticing me, 9 asked wliat was the matter. I did not reply, but cried AVhen West told him, he said I had a foolish notion I requested leave of absence for the day and night to go home (my father then living at the foot of the mountain ), which he granted. I was not long in reach- ing home, tliough it was about three miles. My father was not at home when I arrived, but I told my story to mother, and I thought she was not as strong m her opposition as formerly. When father came I broached the subject to him, and he said I was crazy. I said, "Crazy or not, I want to go, and will if Mr Mat- thews will take me," for which speech I received a rep- rimand. This, however, did not deter me. I kept on teasing for his permission until he finally said, "If your mother is willing, you can go and see Mr. Matthews " She put me off until morning. I suppose they had a consultation. Indeed, I know that they concluded that Mr. Matthews would reject me rhey both knew him, and had both been to his office that day, where my father was employed in writing articles of agreement for the voyagers to sign. My father knew that Mr. Matthews had his full complement of clerks In the morning I received permission from my parents to go and see Mr. Matthews, with th-^ understanding that If ae would engage me they would consent to my going. '^ Now, the question was, how to approach Mr. Mat- the.^, and I formed many plans, but finally, trusting to Mr. Dyde for an introduction, and getting him to get his parents to offer my services and intercede for me on the ground of my friendship for their son, an interview with Mr. Matthews was had. He told me that he had his M f 10 full complement of clerks and men engaged, and that I was really too young to go; but he iinally said to me, " If you can get your parents' consent I will engage you for live years and pay you one hundred and twenty dol- lars per year, more on account of John Dyde than any- thing else, as he wants you to go with him." I then knew the negotiation was ended, as I had my father's word, which never failed. I sought my father and reported, and he and my mother were sorely disappointed and grieved, but offered no further opposition. The agreement was soon thereafter signed, and I drew fifty dollars which my mother expended for my outfit. A part of my outfit consisted of a swallow-tail coat (the first I ever had) and pahts and vest, all of which were much too large for me, and designed to be tilled by my future growth. The clerks were allowed a small wooden chest in which to keep their outfit, for which the company charged them three dollars; the chest and contents weighed about sixty pounds. In one of these my wardrobe was packed, with other necessary articles prepared by my mother. Every preparaf a having been made for my depart- ure, I reported myself in readiness. Orders were issued for the voyagers to report on the 1st of May at Lachine, and the clerks were to report at the same place on the 13th of May, at ten o'clock a. m. Mr. Wallace, with three or four clerks, was detailed to take charge of the loading of the boats on May 1st. On the 13th of May, 1818, having bid adieu to my mother and sisters, I started with my father and brother for 11 Lachine, where I airived about nine o'clock in tlie morning and leiiorted for duty, Ti.e boat, were all lo,«1ed, the clerks and voyage.-s were there and many (rien.ls and relatives hiul i«sembled to l,i,l hem farewell; all were strangers to n,e, except my friend l>yile, Mr. Matthews and Mr, Walhw*. To Mr. Wallace was assigned the duty of ari-anging the orews and detailing the clerks to the different blats. Mr. WaUace wius a Scotchman, and was one of a party wlm was .sent by Mr. Astor to the Columbia River on an expedition which was broken up by the war of 1812 He with others, returned overland; their vessel; having been attiutol by Indians, was blown up by one of the men on board He was a man of large experience and of great ener- Sy and capacity, and, like most Scotchmen, was a strict dis- cphnarian, with a powerful will and of undaunted courage lliough sixty, two years have passed since then, I dis- tinctly ..ememter the animating and affecting scene pre- sented that morning. All being i-eady for the departure It m^ announced that a half-hour would be given for eave-taking, and during that time every man was at liberty and under no restraint. Then came the parting embraces; tears and blessings being showered on all Mr. Matthews had embarked in the largest boat, which Zrafers^ '^'"""'^^'^' ""'' ™^'""<"' ^y ^ Pi**! crew of The timeforleave-takingshavingexpired, Mr. Wallace, ma loud voice, gave the command, "To boats all"; and in a lew moments all hands were aboard and pushing off frmn the shore amid c'u .rs and farewell shouts HonTjbfr" '" "'■• ''•'"*'^"^' ""^^ ^""« «'« boat "ong, which was joined in by all the voyagers and clerks 12 in the exi)edition. Stout arms and brave liearts were at tlie oars, and tlie boats fairly flew through the blue waters of the St. Lawrence River. My friend I)yde and myself had been assigned to the same boat, a favor we recognized as coming from Mr. Matthews. I cannot describe my feelings as I looked back upon the forms of my father and brother, from whom I was tlien about to be separated. Nor did I, until that time, realize my situation or regret my engagement. The thought that I might never again see those most dear to me fllled my soul with anguish. Bitter tears I could no., help sliedding, nor did I care to. When the boats stopped for lunch at noon, the clerks Avere invited to meet Mr. iVfatthews, and were then intro- duced to each other, Mr. Matthews making a short speech to them. , Our lunch consisted of wine, crackers and cheese, and in a lialf-liour from the time of halting we resumed our journey. About four o'clock in the afternoon we camped for the night. The clerks all messed with Mr. Matthews, in a mess-tent provided for the purpose. One small slee-ping tent was allotted to four clerks. The men had no shelter except tarpaulins, which, in stormy weather, were placed upon poles, thus forming a roof. Log fires were kindled at either or both ends, and each man was provided with one blanket. The voyagers kept their clothing and tobacco in linen or tow bags provided by the company for that purpose. The clerks were supplied with a thin mattress, upon which two slept, and a blanket each, and a small tarpau- 13 lin in which to roll up their mattress andblanKets. The tarpaulin also served as a carpet for the tents. The men were fed exclusively upon pea soup and salt pork, and on Sunday an extra allowance of hard biscuit. The tables of the clerks were also supplied with salt pork and pea soup, and in addition thereto, with tea, sugar, hard l)read, and such meats as could be procured from time to time. All took breakfast at daybreak, and soon after sunrise the boats were under way. One hour was allowed at noon for dinner, and at sundown we camped for the night, w^hich made a long day of hard woj-k for the men, though they were occasionally allowed ten minutes " to pipe," i. e., to fill their pipes for smoking. Our boats were heavily laden, and our progress up the swift St. Lawrence was necessarily slow. Some days, when we had "rapids" to overcome, thi-ee to five miles was the full day's journey. And where the rapids were heavy, the crews of three, and sometimes four boats were allotted to one, seven or eight of the men being in the water, pushing and pulling and keeping the boat from sheering into the current. Two men remained in the boat, one in the bow, the other at the stern, with iron-pointed poles to aid the men in the water, and to steer and keep her bow heading the current, the rest of the men on the shore pulling on a rope which was attached to the bow. Yet with all this force, the current at times was so strong the boat would scarcely move; and the force of the current would raise the water to the very top of the " cut- water," and some- times even over the sides of the boat. On several occasions, the boat and men were dragged 14 back until thoy f„,„„l a„ "ed,ly," when all „-„nl,l stop an, roat for another effort Thie, work was very severe on he ■„,.„, they toiling f,o,n early n.orninj, nntil night, w,M, only a„ hour's interval at noon, and an occasiona respite while stemming a swift current Great dissatisfaction prevailed ainoiiK the voyagei-s and, desertions heconiing frequent, guards were estab' hshed at night, consisting of the elerks; and yet scarcely a morning appeare,! that some were not niissin.r We however, moved steadily along, making a dailyl-erage ot ahout hfteen miles, we clerks, sauntering, whenever niclination led us, on the hanks, or sometimes inland for several miles, stopping at houses occasionally and eliat- tmg with the inmates, where we were always cordially .eeeived, and often treated, to the best they had The news of the advancing brigade preceded us, and we found them fully posted as to our coming. At one time we received a pleasa^.t visit from the late Hiram Norton of J.ocki,ort, Illinois, who then resided on the St. Lawrence- and then began an acquaintance which in later years' ripened into a warm friendship. ,,H°'™";1f'^'"S *''««e excursions and the beauty and variety ot the scenery through which we passed our daily routine became extremely monotonous. We were about a month in reaching Toronto, then called -'Little ^ oik a small town of about three hundred inhabitants, mostly Canadian French. By this time the number of our men was greatly reduced by desertions, and Mr. Matthews began to fear that he would be obliged to leave some of the boats for want of crews. The hard work however, was over, as from that point there was no more current to hinder our progress. Here Mr. Matthews 15 changed our route, and instead of passing through Lake Erie via Buffalo, as was intended, he hired ox teams, loading our goods in carts, and detailing most of the clerks to accompany them over to what was called "Youngs Street," to Lake vSimcoe, where we encamped and remained some two weeks, until all our boats were hauled over and launched into that romantic little lake and reloaded. Two yoke of cattle were also i)ut on board one of the boats. We struck camp and proceeded to the other end, where the goods and boats, with the help of the oxen, made the Not-ta-wa-sa-ga portage, into the river of the same name. Though this portage was only six miles, we were a week conveying our goods and boats across. During this time we were nearly devoured with mosquitos and gnats. We were in an uninhabited wilderness, with no road over the low swamp lands Desertion among the men had ceased, for the very good reason that there was no chance to escape. All rejoiced when we were again in our boats, and, with the current aiding us, swept down the winding course of the Nottawasagji River. The worst of the journey was now over, and with lightened hearts the voyagers again lifted their voices and joined in the melodious boat songs We descended the river to Lake Huron, which we coasted. Early in the afternoon of the third of July we reached Goose Island, and camped in sight of Mich il-i-mac-i-nac "The Great Turtle," the wind being too strong from the west to admit of our crossing the open lake. However, as the island abounded in gull's eggs, we spent an agreeable evenmg around our camp fires, feasting on them. As the lake was still rough, the morning of the fourth bemg too stormy to venture across, we devoted the time 16 to washing, and dressing in our best clothing, not so much in cotnmetnoration of tlie day, as of our joy at the sight of that beautiful island where our wearisome voyage was to end, thankful that we had been brought in safety, without accident, through so many difficulties and perils. We became so impatient at the delay that about two o'clock in the afternoon we started across, but the wind continued so high that the passage took about three hours, and we were unable to round the point of the island, but were compelled to land on the east side, at the foot of ''Robinson's Folly." Here we were met by Messrs. Kamsey Crooks and Robert Stewart, the managers of the American Fur Company, together with a host of clerks and voyagers, who extended to us k cordial welcome, and thus we celebrated the fourth of July, 1818. On this island lived old voyagers, worn out with the hard service incident to their calling, with their families of half-breeds. A few, only, of the inhabitants engaged in trade. Mrs. Mitchell, an energetic, enterprising woman, the wife of Dr. Mitchell, a surgeon of the English army, and stationed at Drummond's Island, had a store and small farm. Michael Dousman, Edward Biddle, and John Drew were also merchants, all depending on trading with the Indians. These merchants, to a very great extent, were under the influence of the American Fur Company, purchasing most of their goods from them, and selling to them their furs and peltries. This island was the headquarters of the American Fur Company, and here I first learned something of the working and discipline of that mam ! J 17 moth corporation, and took iny first loHsons m i]w life of an Indian trader, a lit«3 which I followed oxcluHivoly for ten consecutive years. Here, also, was located Fort Mackinaw, at that time garrisoned by tinee or four companies of United States troops. The villagfi had a population of about five hundred, mostly of Cana- dian French and of mixed Indian blood, whose chief occupation was fishing in summer and hunting in winter. There were not more than twelve white women on the island, the residue of the female population being either all or part Indian. Here, during the summer" months, congregated the traders employed by the Fur Company, bringing their collections from their several trading posts, which extended from the British domin- ions on the north and the Missouri River in the weat, south and east to the white settlements; in fact, to all the Indian hunting grounds, so that when all were collected they added three thousand or more to the population. The Indians from the shores of the ui)per lakes, who made this island a place of j-esort, numbered from two to three thousand more. Their wigwams lined the entire beach two or three rows deep, and, with the tents of the traders, made the island a scene of life and anima. tion. The voyageurs were fond of fun and frolic, and the Indians indidged in their love of liquor, and, by the exhibition of their war, medicine, and other dances and sports, often made both night and day hideous with their yells. These voyageurs were c . Canadian French, and were the only people fitted for the life th - -n-e compelled to endure, their cheerful tempera • id happy disposition making them contented under the privations and hardships incident to their calling. 18 At tlu5 time of our arrival, all the traders from the North and the (rreat West luul reached the iHland with their returns of furs collected from the Indians during the previous winter, which were being counted and ap- praised, and th(^ profit or loss of each "outHt" ascer- tained. All of the differtat outfits were received into a large warehouse, where they were assorted into various classes or grades, carefully counted, packed, and pressed for shii)ment to New York to John Jacob Astor, the presi- dent of the company. The work of assorting recjuired expert judges of furs, a nice discrimination between the different grades being necessary, as prices varied very greatly, there being as many as six grades. Marten (sable), for example, being classed as extra fine dark, number one dark, number two dark, number one fine brown, numbei- two fine brown, immber one fine, common, number two common, mim- ber three common, good, out oi season, inferior, dam- aged, and worthless. The value of the fur of this animal dt)penued as nmch (hi color as fineness, and was found in the greatest variety of shades of color, and, with the exception of silver gray fox, was th(i most valuable. Mink, muskrat, raccoon, lynx, wild cat, fox;, wolverine, badger, otter, beaver, and other small fur animals, i. ceived the same care, except there were fewer g:- *les of quality. In bear skins, only, were there more than four grades, but in those the discrimination was nearly equal to marten, being extra fine black she, numbor two ditto, fine ii!:t!>4>e:' oi'^, number two ditto, and fine, coarse, and DnMu^va one, two, and three he bear. Deer skins required but little skill in assorting ; they were I ^^ I!) cluHHeW UH red (!„(., ,,m1 buck, blue doe. blre buck, seascu doe, season buck, out .f season, and d.una» of |Mn\^ hloo«l. ami \vo»i* lu\uls ol" f.uuilios. IkkI liulian w i\ iv'^, Thoir rluhh"us«Mnouls, TI»on» woix* a l\>\v t>r (ho half hroods who ha«l ituviv«»«l a t^»n»u»ot» o«luoaliou. oilhor iu Kuglish ov KixMuh. whioh was g-tMWMallv ol" littlo uso to (Iumm. as tho\ woi^Muostlv (oo la/.\ or pnuul (o(»arn a livt^lihootl, Au>ou,«, tht* Indiau or pari huiian wouion who wt ro or hail h«HM\, n>arrio»l {o whilo hushautis, woit> louud souu^ »>!' j;ti»al iut»^H«>rtual lajKioilN . w ho » arriinl ou an 0X1, M»si\«M ratio withlho luiUaus, tMUMtl whou» was llu» Mi's. Miloholl hofoH' it»forr«*il lo; sho hat! a stor«» an«l a farm, lu^th uuiKmoxooIUmU n>au!»pMuoul. an«l horohihlron had htH>M woll tHluoalt^l iu l\'U»an im lh«» Kuj;lish anuv. and whilo tlu* Island of Maokinaw was in (ho possossiiMi o\' Kuiiland ho wass(a(ionod (horo; nMuoviuj; af(orwanls (o nrnn»n»«>nd's IsKnui. ho rait^lv visi(od his fainilv. (houjihonlv (if(y nulosdis(an(. llowasa man of st\^M»ii- |>n\jndi»'OS. ha(od(lu» '* Yankoos.'" and would hold tu> sooial iutoiiH>u rso w i(h (hoiu. Mrs. Mi(t'lu>H was quito (ho n>vorso, and luMUg ra(hor IK-irtial (o (ho " Yankoos," (nvdod (hon* wi(h j;r(Mi( oon sidora(ion; sho was a (iut^ housok«M»|)or and ownoil on<' of tlu» hos( housos on (htMskuul; slu^ was (\)nd of good sooio(y. vory hospi(ahlo. and ou(or(aiutHl handsonu^ly. ootivorsing \\\ VWxwU aiul Knglish, ho(h of whioh slu^ spoko (huMUly. AnotluM'of (hoso wiMuoti was Mrs. liafrond>oiso, who alst> trailiHl wi(htht» Indians in (htMultMior, usually up iho (tnuid Kivor i>f Miohigaii; hoiduughlor was highly m tMlnciilfil, Mini iniitri(<«l II Mtifkiiwiw . «' cotnininKlinf; ojllrrr at It'oil Mrs. LiiliomltoiHP could ivjul mihI \viil,<. nnti WIIM M jMM'hHt huly in Ium- nuinn widow. Uvv InislKind, who wmmm lijulor. I •>«id killed |>y Ml) hidiai UMH mid ClUIVOI'HIlllOli; mI|(> wmh m Hiving l)(>oii mIioI look his |)ki«'(Wiiid hiiMi » oil tlii< MisHiMsippi UiviT; hIh< lU'Ms mid ai'cniniiliilpd coiiMidiM-altk nioiM'v Slu> wjiM ariiMwnrdH cinploycMl on a. walaiy liy llio Aiiiorican l<'iir ('oinpany Mis. (Miandk'r iiolcd lor hrr ladvliko niann a sislvr of Mrs. LarroinlK»ist', was al HO viitiu's. w ors and many (MiriHlian Nor liiishand was an invalid and her daiiKhl (»r a i'low. This daiiKhler was also highly ednralrd and was consi^lonMl tho hollo of Mackinaw; sli.. artorvvardM •nniriod Mr. M.'ard. a lawy»>r of (livon May. WisciMiHin. It was niy p».ul CoHimo to ho roc(Mvod into tli««H(> ox- •ollonl laniiliosasa vv,.|,'onio visitor, and thov all took an inlorost in iik^ ;ind inv woH", ChMK, Mv • IV. oalliiiM- I'll* tlioir "hoy i«Msnro ovonniKs woro passed with Ihoni, much to my ploasnro and advani ceivod niiK-h j^ood a»lvi<'o, as w(>ll '•K'*' I'Voiii tli(«iii I ro as instniction in tin '"•*••""' «»•' <'ondnr( iiiK trade u itii the IndiaiiH, whiel ol niiieh hen«>lit to i I waH n<» in my after lite as a trader ll was also my piod rortmie to lorni II <»r Mr. hesehiinips. wl tiio " Illinois ontlit." le an 1 1 win I la nee lo was an old man and tli(< lu^ad ol' Ml l>«vseliamps had Imh^ii (>«lneated at (,hiehee t Coman Catlmlie priest, hut, relnsinK to he ordained, I or a Jit Hie a^t* of niiu>t le. <'<"<>. ''iiKaKed himself to Mr. Han '• ll"' trader at St. Louis, and had devohul many yivuH of Ins life to th,« hulian tni.le on the Ohio and ' lllinoiH Hiv.Ms \v'h,.n tlM> American Kur Company was <,rKun. i'l 24 izod he was eiij^a^d by tliom and plaanl in charge of the "Illinois brigade," or outtit. It was tlie policy of tlie Anieri(!aii Fur ('ompany to monopolize Mie entire inr trade of the Northwest ; and to lliis end they engaged fully nineteen-twentieths of all the traders of that territory, and with their immense capital and influence sutM^eeded in breaking u]) the business of any trader who refused to enter their service. Very soon aftei- reaching Maekinaw and making re- tnrns, the traxhMs couiuieiu'ed organizing their crews and ])reparing their outtits for their return to winter (piarters at their various trading posts, those destined for the ex- treme North being tlie first to receive attention. These outtits wei-e called "brigades," The "brigade" destined for the L;dve of the Woods, having the longest journey to make, was the first to de- pr.rt. They were transported in boats called " batteaux," which very uiuch resembled the boats now used by fish- ermen on the great lakes, except that they were larger, and were each manned by a crew of live men besides a clerk. Fonr of the men rowed while the fifth steered. Eju'h boat <'..rried abont three tons of merchandise, together with the clothing of the men and rations of corn and tallow^ No shelter was provided for the voyagenrs. and their Inggage was confined to twenty pounds in weight, carried in a bag provided for that purpose. The commander of the "brigade" took for his own use the best boat, and with him an extra man, who acted in the capacity of " orderly" to the expedition, and the vill of the commander was the only law known. The clerks were furnished with salt pork, a, bag of Hour, 25 I MSI and cofl'w', jiiKl ji tout for sln^ltcr, and mesMfd with tlip (ronnnandf !• nnd orderly. A va.st multitude assemhl^Ml ;it the liarhor to witness (Ikmi- (h^partui-e, and wluni all was muly the boats glided Ironi the shore, the crewH siiigin«.- some favorite boat song, while the multitude shouted their farewells and wishes lor a successful trip and a safe return; and thus outlit after outfit started on its way for Lake Supeiior, Upper nnd Lower Mississippi, and other j)()sts. The "Wabash and Illinois River outfits" were almost th(^ last, and wei-e speedily followed by the smaller ones for the shores of Lakes Huron and Michi^r.,,,, j.nd which consisted of but from one to three boats. i was detailed to the Fond-du-Lac (Lake Sui.erior) "iM'i^^ade," and a week or yo before its depaiture was relieved from duty at the fur warehouse. About this time I received a letter frcmi my father, wiitten at Erie, Pennsylvania, in which he informed me that he and my brothei- weie thei'e on theii- way to St. Louis, and that they luid waited tliere a week lookin*,- I'or the Pui- Company's vessel, whi(!h it was expected would touch there on her way fiom Buffalo to Mackinaw, upon which they hojied to obtain passage, and thus visit nie, and if they found no way of i)roceeding to St. Louis iVom thei-e, they would return on tlie vessel to Erie : but IV'arin^- she had passed, and being uncertain whether they • shoidd find me on the island, they had reluctantly con- <'I|'vlii('li he olwcrvcd, Mild dniwiii^- from his sjtsli a lotig- li!iir«'d HCiilp, li«^ \v»'t it and sprinklt'd tim watrr in my iiirv. hi a moment my IViir turned to ni^e, an:no,s\ wlio was also a Vermonter and an old fri.-nd of our family, ib-re at latst 1 1'oinid my father, wlio was conversing- willi Mr. Eiioh. lie did not recog- nize me, 8() mucli Jiad I changed .sinco our [)arting, thougli only Hix months Iiad passed. J was then thin and pale from close conlinenumt in the store, but with the outdoor life and exi)osure, I had gained in weight and strtmgth, and become as brown as an Indian. On irupiiring for my brother, I learned that he was employfKl in a drug store near by, where Ave found him pounding soim^thing in a mortar. Though I did not speak lie knew me at once, and exclaimetl, "O, brother! brother!" bursting into tears. The meeting was a joy- ous one, and I tliiidc the day the happiest of my life. At this time St. Louis had a population of about eight hundred, composed of French, English, Spanish, and Americaii. Oahokia, a French town on the opposite side of the river, was then the largest, it having a population of About two ycm-s previous to tho doiUh of Mr. Hubbard, Miss Paddock the " pretty young girl," of 1818, was reniiniled of this incident by reading a published letter of IVIr. Hubbard's, and immediately wrote him. giving iier address, after which several letters passed between them. mi ii 1} ' I ii ii 48 about one thousand. There Mr. Deschamps made most of his purchases of flour and tobacco, which, with some merchandise bought in St. Louis, completed our return cargu. This French village was then a jolly place. Mr. Des- champs was a favorite with all, and was treated as the distinguished guest of every family. There was dancing at some of the houses every night ; and even the priests claimed his assistance in their singing. I was permitted to remain in St. Louis with my father and brother, being required to report daily to Mr. Des- champs, and perform such duties as were assigned to me. My home was at Mr. Paddock's, with my brother, and here I was treated very kindly by all the family. My father was preparing to go to Arkansas, with the in ten tion of locating permanently there ; and when, at the end of two weeks, we parted, it was our farewell, as I never saw him again. ii SHAUB-E.XEE_WA-BA AND CHE-MO-CO-MON-ESS-TIPPE CANOE BATTLE aUOUND-THE KEAST OF THE DEAD. About the t.,ve„tieth of November we started on our return voyage, ascending the Mississippi and Ilhnois Riv and«fteent^HotBee::Lt:L:^;rrrsi^^^^^^^ .ng me particular instructions as to my duties, ^d'^r mg the books, left me with his blessing. TheacouutsCd " heretofore been kept in hieroglyphics by Beebeau mv gnoran^master, who proved to be sickly, Lss, J^,Z ant. He spent the greater part of his time in bed attended by a fat, dirty Indian wonian, a doctress wit made and adn.inistered various decocti.rs to 1 m ' oZ "f our men, Antoiue, had an Indian wife and t^vo clnldren. the oldest a boy about my own aJe but vtZ -- not regularly in the en.ploy of the Con,,; 1 ' "'" wnum^ ,t, had become known to the Indians in the vicin my amval he, accompanied by Shaub-e.nee called on me say„,g they wished to see the little An.erie t^^^ &haub.e-„ee was then about tnentv-five (40) years of age, 'T I; I iiMiiiiil ihil il I % t!i; no and was, I thought, the finest looking man I had ever seen. He was fully six feet in height, finely propor- tioned, and with a countenance expressive of intelligence, firmness and kindness. He was one of Tecumseh's aids at the hattle of the Thames, heing at his side when Tecumseh was shot. Bt-coming disgusted with the con- duct of General Proctor, he, with Billy Caldwell (the Sauganash). withdrew their supi)ort from the British and espoused the cause of the Americans. Shauh-e-nee, in after years, during the Black Jiawk War, was indefat- igahle in notifying the white settlers in DuPage, Grundy, and La Salle Counties of threatened danger, often riding both night and day, in great peril, and by his timely warning and counsel saving the lives of many settlers. He lived to the age of eighty-four years, and died July 17, 1850, at his home in Morris, Grundy County, respected and beloved by all who knew him. Chief Wa-ba had shortly before this lost a son, of about my own age, and so, according to the Indian cus- tom, he adopted me in his stead, naming me Che-mo-co- moness (the Little American). I enjoyed the friendship of Wa-ba for a number of years and until his death, and I here desire to deny the statement made by a historian of our State, that Wa-ba plundered certain mounds and removed from them their valuable contents. Such a deed would have been wholly at \ariance with his character, which was that of an honest man, and certainly could not have occured without my having htovd of it, which I never did until I saw it in the book refc.red to. Wa-ba had another son who, with Antoine's son and myself, frequently hunted together, and we all became quite expert. 51 0..r cabin was built of Iors, those forming the sides being Ia,d one on the other and held in place by stakes driven into the ground, and these fastened together at the top by withes of bark. The logs forming the ends were of smaller size, driven into the ground perpendicularly, the centre ones being longer and forked at the top and upon these rested the ridge pole. Straightgrained' logs were then selected an,l split as thin as possible, making sections of three or four inches in thickness, which we,^ laid with one end resting upon the ridge pole, the other on the logs which formed the sides of the cabin; through these was driven a wooden pin, which rested against the top log on the inside of the cabin, and projected eighteen niches or two feet above the roof. The cracks and open- "ig.s of roof and sides were then daubed with a cement made of clay mixed with ashes, and then the whole roof was covered with long grass, which was held in place by other logs laid on top. The chimney and fire place were made in the follow- >.ig manner: At the centre of one side of the room four straight poles were driven firmly in the ground, the front ones being about eight feet apart and the back ones about five fee ; then small saplings, cut to proper lengths, were fastened by withes at each end to the upright poles, and about eighteen inches apart. Then came the mortar made from clay and ashes, into which was kneaded long grass so as to form strips ten or twelve inches in width and about four feet long; the centre of these strips were then placed or hung on the cross poles and pressed to- g,ethcr so as to cover the wood, and in this way the chimney was carried up to the top of the upright poles and tlieii three or four feet above the roof, or oven with ijIT'' i;* t\w ri(1};v |»()1(> scco 52 11(1 csimI «>r moi'liir, mIkmiI Uvo uu'hvH thick, wmm (hen Ihrow^i on. |)I(>hh(mI io Uu^ nni^h jirst coMt Miul Hiuoolluvl with live ImiulM; \\w licjirlli wms llu>n ni.uh' of dry, Ht.ill" cliiy, pouikUmI down hard, find the siructuro was linislicd. I' tlio <'Ml)in WMH in;id(> ol" piinclironM, I lie hwv- Tho iloor o fjUH > o r which w(M(Mhvssed with a common axe or lonia- hawk, so as to rcmov(» the splinters. th(> cdj;(>s h(Mn^^ Ic to tit together as close as possihle. Th(> door was 1(> of the san»(> material. pnnch(>ons. lumg on ith niai mai 1 w wooden hingvs, and fasUMUMl hy a wooden laid hack string attached, so il conld he rais(>d I'rom th(> out- 1(>, and wlien th(> siring was ])nlled in, the door was k(>d. To niak(» \ho window, one of the logs in th(» end of the cahin was cut so as to l(Mve an opening of ahont (Mghteen ineh(>s in widlh hy twenty or thirty inclu'S in length. SK IO( into which was s( i a rongh sash, and over tins was pasti^d or ghied papei', w Inch had heen thoronghly oih'd will 1 l)ear or coo n gr(>as(>. This eompleliMl tJie lions(> U(>ahovetl\e other, and which wis wai-m and comfortaitle. Onrhnnks W(>re placed in a row. o weriMnade of pnnclieons split as tliin as) hottom r(>st(^l on ])arallel saplings cnt to a prop(M' liMigt h, ■rted in a two inch anger hol*^ |)ossi!)l( Tl U! WO end o[' whifh was insc in the logs of lh.> cabin, and the other snpi)orted hy a t upright. Th(> hedding eonsist(>d of loni pnncheon s* (•t>ai's(» grass, was p laid lengthwis(M)f thehnnk.on top of which lac(>U a skin of some kind (generally hnckskin)oran Indian mat. At th(> head the grass was rais(>d so as to make a pilU>w, ai\d to (>ach man was allowed on(> blankest lor cover M n>" (.'il'N', with n.iiiMl s;ipliM^rl,.^rH, uikI |.!m(-hc(.Ti top .'111(1 }i tliiv(( |(>g^«.(|Hl,l,(;()iiH|,ni<;kMl iiiM (•om|)|((t,,j| (,li(( riiniidiiv of |, H' s.'iiiK^iiiainier. H' niaiiHioM. TllOolily tools .•illovvcd to <.;i(|| ,„i(lit vv.iH a cotmnon iiiary Hcnlpiiig kiiiln, n • ' six iiichoH lon^- mimI l\\^\ a tvvo-iiicli iinp-r, an oid c-ntokcd kiiilo (this had a, hiad rounded at th(^ <-nd). and tomahawk, and with tl plciiicnts nvcrythinK vvas coiiHtnictc'd, and fncn did (ixcclh'nt work with tl i('H(! nn- soin(( o I tl 10 Our kit(;h(!n utonscl <'H(!siinpl(^ toolH. m <'!■ on(iH. s wcio Ccw and piiiijitivc. (;onsi8t- K <»'■ .•• frying-pan, a, (;onplc of tin ])ots, oik^ very largo Indian howl niado of wood, and s«!V(!raJ small 'I'.il'l*' knives and forks wo had none, and onr spoonH woro of wood, ranging in oapacity fnnn a, gill to a pint. Wood was, of course, plenty, and oin- large (lr(^I)la(;o was kept well (ilk-d. ■om a h(K)k made A eanip-kettle chain was susp(nided fi I'rom tli<. lind. of a, tree and fastened to the roof I which also hung cords, whicl ronj I w(!r(! UHod for roasting K'tHKv Onr meat Ix^ng thus snsptMided beforo a bright III <', It was the duty of one man. with a 1 ong Hti(^k, to l<('01>'<' vvhirling ra,pidly until snfificiently cooked, when it was placuMl in the largo wooden bowl on the tal)Io, and *''"'' '»"<" ''<'l|><"*l hims(>lf by cutting off with his knifoand lingers as nmch as lio desired Hsually wo had nothing •<"Ih«^ on th(> tables ex.vpt honey. Tlu^ wild turkey was UH('d aH a substitnto for bread, and when eaten with fat vemson, C(»on, or bear, is more delicious th ca n i Ein any roast >o. Ono of our luxuries, which w as ros(3rvod for special oc- msions, was corn soup, and this was alw n\ Tl lys acc(!j)tal)lo lOHo traderH who wore so fortunate as to possess an |! ^ II r 1 * 1 i i 1 i l^ a 64 iron bako-pan or skillet, were particularly favored, and the more so if they were also possessed of flour, for then many delicacies were possible, and many kinds of chopped meats and baked ' ' avingnols ' ' afforded a dish not to be refused by kings. Let nui give one or two recipes : To one pound of lean venison, add one pound of the breast of turkey, three-fourths of a pound of the fat of bear or raccoon ; salt and pepper to taste, and season with the wild onion or leek; chop up or pound fine (the meat), and mix all well together ; then make a thin crust, with which cover the sides and bottom of the bake-pan ; then put in the meat and cover it with a thicker crust, which must be at- tached firmly to the side crust ; now put on the cover of your bake-pan and set it on the hot coals, heaping them on the top, and bake for one hour, and you will have a de- licious dish. Another : Make a thin batter and drop small balls of the minced meat into it and fry in bear or coon fat, tak- ing care that the meat is well covered with the batter. This we called '" les avingnol." From the ponds we gathered the seeds of the lotus, which we used for coffee, our ever-filled honey-trough furnishing the sweetening. Our supply of salt and pepper was rather limited, and these were used only on special occasions. Thus passed the winter. When at home, chatting, jok- ing and playing tricks on each other; making oars and paddles to replace tlie worn out and broken ones, and getting ourselves ready for the spring's departure. As I had little to do in the house besides keeping the books and being; present when sales were made for furs .«■! 56 or on credit, and being disgusted with the disagreeable and filthy habits of my master, Beebeau, I fairly lived in the open air with my two comrades. Our time was spent in the manly exercise of hunting and tiapf)ing, on foot or in canoes, and as they spoke in the Indian language only, they were of great assistance to me in learning it, which I accomplished before spring. I also became pro'- flcient in hunting, and could discern animal tracks on the ground and tell what kind they were, and whether thoy were walking slow or fast or running. I could detect the marks on the trunks of trees made by such animals as the raccoon or panther, if they had made it a retreat within a month or so. My companions had many laughs and jokes at my expense for my awkwardness in hunt- ing and ignorance in tracking animals, but I faithfully persevered in my education. My clothing during this winter and for the subsequent years of my life as a trader, consisted of a buckskin hunt- ing shirt or a blue capote belted in at the waist with a sash or buckskin belt, in wiiich was carried a knife and sheath, "a tomahawk, and a tobacco pouch made of the skin of some animal, usually otter or mink. In the pouch was carried a flint and steel and piece of punk. Underneath my outside garment I wore a calico shirt, breech -cloth, and buckskin leggins. On myfeet *neips and moccasins, and sometimes in Avinter, a red knit cap on my head. I allowed my hair to grow I< )ng and usually went bareheaded. When traveling in winter I carried, and sometimes wore, a blanket. During this winter I made two trips into the interior: * Square pieces of blanket which wer<- folded over the feet and were worn m plaoc of stockings. LI i?^ r f ' i: 1 1 1 1 \^ I 1 _ . li J 1 66 One to the mouth of Rock River, where I first saw Black Hawk, ami for the first time slept in an Indian wigwam. The other to the Wabash Rivei-. For the privilege of go- ing, I was required to carry a ])ack on my back of fifty pounds Aveight, the men with me carrying eighty pounds. These packs contained goods to exchange for furs and peltries. During the first few days this was very severe, and I often wished I had not undei'taken it, but by the time 1 returned, I was able to carry my pack with comparative ease and keep up with the others in walking. On my trip to the Wabash River we found a band of Kick-a-poo Indians encami)ed on Pine Creek, a branch of the Wabash, and one evening quite a number of the In- dians gathered into the trader's wigwam and were dis- cussing the subject of Harrison's fight at Tippecanoe. A number of these Indians had participated in the battle, and twelve of them had been wounded. As I could not understand their language sufiiciently well to converse, I employed my man as interpreter, and told them that from Avhat I had read in books, they had deceived Gen- eral Harrison, pretending to be friendly and getting him to camp in an exposed situation where an attacking enemy would h;ive great advantages. They laughed heartily, saying that the contrary was the truth. He had selected the strongest natural position in all that country ; that at any other place they could have conquered him and but few could have escaped. In consequence of his strong position, they had a long consultation in planning the attack. I was so much interested in what I heard that I asked to go to the battle ground on the following morning, which they agreed to. Accordingly, the next 67 morning I was furnished with a pony, and accon.panied by two or three of them, started for the hattlo ground and on arriving there found that their report was eor^ rect and was much surprised at seeing such a lo<;atio„ The ground was admirahly adapted to defense, heing on an elevated plateau. On the westerly side ran Bur- nett Creek, tlie^ hank of xvhich, on the side of Harrison's encampment, was very steep, while on tlie opposite side the descent was gradual. On the easterly side was a pmn-ie swamp skirting the plateau. x\ortherly and east- erly was high ground and timber land, and it was here and along the creek that Harrison's soldiers made the attack. From Harrison's Report, pp. 28i)-200, it appears that General Harrison did not quite like the ground, l,ut I am satisfied that no better could have been found in that vicmity, and in that opinion I am sustained by Gen- eral Tipton, who participated in the battle, and with whom I afterwards became acquainted while he was Indian agent at Logansport, Ind. At a subsequent date I again visited the locality in company with General Tipton, and he pointed out to me the positions held by the contending forces, and, his ac- count of the battle agreed with that given me by my red friends. The general and myself seated ourselves under a tree, on the bank of the little creek where the Kick- a-poos made their attack, and he there detailed to me the incidents of the march and fight. With a small stick he mapped out on the ground the positions held by the troops and Indians, and, playfully digging and throwing up pebbles, he said: - Near this spot a friend of mine had his jaw shot away; he suffered great agony, but soon ■ died. Just as he said this he unearthed some teeth ^rf 08 i ? i which had once belonged to a human being. He i)icked them up, firmly believing tlu'm to be those of his friend, and for years after they occupied a 'aco in his cabinet of curiosities. Our trip proved Ci successful one, and having sold all our goods, we hired ponies to transport our furs and peltries and returned homo, where I was warmly wel- comed by my young companions, who were glad to have me again join them in their hunts. A day sufficed to decipher Beebeau's hieroglyphics, extract from lem- orandas and memory, the items of accounts, and write up the books, and I dropped back into the regular routine of my life. I also made a visit to our trading post sit- uated thn^e miles below Peoria, which was in charge of old Ml'. Beason. Though this post was sixty miles dis- tant we reached it in one day's travel by starting at day- light and walking until dark, and returned after a visit of two or three days. By constant practice I had by this time become a good walker and could cover forty to fifty miles per day with ease. Winter passed without any special incident, and early in March, 1811), we received by a carrier orders from Mr. Deschamps to hav(> every thin^" in complete readiness to start for Mackinaw on the twentieth. Wo kept track of the days of the month by notches cut in a stick, which hung in the store, having no almanac or calendar, and indeed I was the only one of the party who could have read it if we had possessed one. Our fare had consisted during the winter of a variety of game, such as venison, raccoon, panther, bear, and turkey, varied as spring apprm^ched with swan, geese and crane, besides almost every variety of duck. Prairie 1 09 chickens eind quail were also abundant, hut these we did not consider eatable. Qui- game was cooked in French style, and to our mind, could not be excelled in any kit(.'hen. We had received in the uill one pound of green tea and a bag of flour, about a hundred pounds, and while this lasted we luxuriated on Sundays in pancakes and lionev The woods abounded in wild honey, and we kept a large wooden bowl full at all times, of which we partook when- ever we desired. In the forenoon of the 2()fch of Afarch, we heard in the distance the sound of the familiar boat-song and recoo-- nized the rich tones of Mr. Deschamps' voice, and we knew the - Brigade" was coming. We all ran to the landing and soon saw Mr. Deschamps' boat rounding the point about a mile below; his ensign floating in the broeze. We shouted with joy at their arrival and gave th(im a hearty welcome. The remainder of the day and far into the night was spent .in exchanging friendly greetings and re- counting the events that had transpired since our partmg. Little sleep was had, and but little wanted Mr. Deschamps had flour and tobacco, and we feasted and smoked and talked and laughed, and a happier party cannot well be imagined.. The next day we spent in loading our boats, and the day following the thirteen boats of the "Brigade " pushed off from the shore, and, to the music of the Canadian boat-song, we started on our long return journey. The first night we halted at our old campground at the foot of Starved Rock. From this point until we reached Cache Island, our progress was very slow, averag- *..igfcs>«»-< 60 1 f ^ 1 \v ing- l)ut from six to ten inih^H per day. The river was hi^li, tlie current swift, and the rapids strong, and as the l)oats WiU-e heavily laden and a (;old storm previiiled, we were <;lad to camp tsarly and afford the men a much- needed rest. Early ilie morning following we left Cache Island, and as the wind was strong from tlu^ southwest, we hoisted our square sails for tho first time, and rapidly passed up the Desplaines River, tln\,>ugh Mud Lake, to South Branch, regardless of the course of the channel, and soon reached Chicago. We camped on the north side of the river, a small dis- tance above Fort Dearborn, where we remained six or eight days rc^pairing our l)oats and putting them in con- dition for the more serious journey of coasting Lake Michigan. Our stay in Chicago was a pleasant one to me. The same officers were in command at the fort that were there when we left in the fall, and warmly greeted us on our return. Mr. Kinzie again took me to his own house, where I was treated as one of the family, and I formed a strong attachment for these good friends. Seeing Mrs. Kinzie again brought my mother vividly to my miud, and made me all the more anxious to hear from her and my father. Since parting from them I had not heard from either, and could not expect to until I reached Mackinaw. On a beautiful morning in April, about the 20th or 25th, we left Chicago and camped at the Grand Calumet. We did not desire to reach the mouth of Grand River (Grand Haven) before the May full moon, for annually at that time the Indians assembled to fast and feast their dead, the ceremonies occnpying eight or ten days. A i 61 noted burying ground was selected and the ground around tlie graves thorougldy cleaned, chey being put in the best of order. Many of the graves were marked by small poles, to which were .attached pieces of white cloth. These preparations having been completed, all except the young children blackcuied their faces with charcoal and fasted for two whole days, eating literally nothing during that time. Though many of them had no rel- atives buried there, all joined in the fast and ceremonies in memory of their dead who were buried elsewhere, and the sounds of mourning and lamentation were heard around the graves and in the wigwams, At the close of the two days' fast they washed their faces, put on their decorations, and commenced feasting and visiting from one wigvi^am to another. They now placed wooden dishes at the head of each grave, which were kept daily supplied with food, anil were protected from the dogs, wolves, and other animals, by sticks driven into the ground around and inclosing them. The feasting lasted several days, and the ceremonies were concluded by their celebrated game of ball, which is in- tensely interesting, even the dogs becoming excited and adding to the commotion by mixing with the players and barking and racing around the grounds. We progressed leisurely to the mouth of the St. Joseph River, where we encamped for several days, and were joined by the traders from that rive •. We reached Grand River early in May, and sought a good camping place uo the river, some distance fi-om the Indian camps. The "Feast of the Dead" had commenced, and many In- dians had already arrived, and for fiv ip or six days we were witnesses to their strange yet solemn ceremonies. h "t .»^.,. .^-««...»:«„;«M^ I . 62 One evening, at the close of the feast, we were in- formed that an Indian, who the fall previous, in a drunken quarrel, had killed one of the sons of a chief of the Manistee band, would on the morrow deliver himself up to suffer the penalty of his crime according to the In- dian custom. We gave but little credence to the rumor, though the Indians seemed much excited ovei- it. On the following day, hov^ever, the rumor proved true, and I witnessed the grandest and most thrilling incident of my life. The murderer was a Canadian Indian, and had no blood relatives among the Manistees, but had by invita- tion, returned with some of the tribe from ]\Ial(len, where they received their annuities from the English Govern- ment, and falling in love with a Manistee maiden, had married her and settled among them, agi-eeingto l)ec()me one of their tribe. As was customary, all his earnings from hunting and trapping belonged to his fatlier-in-law until the birth of his first child, after which he com- manded his time and could use his gains for the benefit of his family. At; the time of the killing of the chief's son lie had several children and was very poor, possess- ing nothing but his meagre wearing apparel ai^d a few traj[)s. He was a fair hunter, but more proficient as a trapper. Knowing that his life would be taken unless he could ransom it with furs and articles of value, after consulting with his wife, he determined to depr.rt at night in a canoe with his family and secretly make his way to the marshes at the headwaters of the Muskegon River, where he had before trapped successfully, and there tnideavor to catch beaver, mink, marten, and other fine furs, 63 which were usually abundant, and retui-n in the spring and satisfy the demands of the chief. As, according to the custom, if he failed to satisfy the chief and family of the murdered man, either by ransom or a sacrifice of his own hfe, they could demand of his wife's brothers what he had failed to give, he consulted with one of them and told him of his purpose, and designated a particular location on the Muskegon where he could be found if it became necessary for him to return, and deliver himself up. Having completed his ari-angements. he made his escape and arrived safely at the place of destination, and having but few traps and but a small sui)ijly of ammu- nition, he arranged dead-fail traps in a circuit around his camp, hoping with them and his few traps to have a successful winter, and by spring to secure enough to save his life. After the burial of his son, the chief took counsel with his sons as to what they should do to revenge the dead, and as they knew the murderer was too poor to pay their demands, they determined upon his death, and set about finding him. Being disappointed in this, they made a demand upon the brothers of his wife, who, knowing that they could not satisfy his claims, counselled together as to what course to pursue, all but one of them -believ- ing he had fled to Canada. The younger brother, knowing his whereabouts, sent word to the chief that he would go in search of the mur- derer, and if he failed to produce him would himself give his own life in his stead. This being acceptable, withou divulging the secret of bis brother-in law's hiding place, he started to find him. It was a long and difficult jour- ney, as he had no landnmrks to go by and only kn.ew .1 ; ■'■* \^ I i' 64 that he should find his brother-in-law on the headwaters of the Muskegon, which he finally did. The winter had been one of unusually deep snow, and the spring one of great floods, which had inundated the country where he was. The bears had kept in their dens, and for some reason the marten, beavers, and mink nad not been found, so that when their brother-in- law reached them he and his family were almost per- ishing from starvation, and his winter's hunt had proved unsuccessful. They accordingly descended together to the main river, where the bi-other left them for his re- .turn home, it being agreed between them that the mur- derer would himself report at the mouth of Grand River during the "Feast of the Dead," which promise he faithfully })erformed. Soon after sunrise the news spread through the camp that he was coming. Tiie chief hastily selected a spot in a valley between the sand-hills, in which he placed himself and family in readines to i-eceive him, v^hile we traders, together with the Indians, sought the surround- ing sand-hills, that we might have a good oi)p()rtunity to witness all that sliould occur. Presently we heard the monotonous thiimj) of the Indian drum, and soon there- after the mournful voice of the Indian, chanting his own death song, and tlien we beheld him, marching with his wife and children, slowly and in single file, to the place selected for his execution, still singing and beating the drum. • When he reached a spot near where sat the chief, he placed tlie drum on the grcnuid, and his wife and chil- dren seated tliemselves on mats wliicli had been prepared for them. He then addressed the chief, saying: " I, in li 66 a drunken moment, stabbed your son, being provoked to It by his accusing me of being a coward and calling me aii Ola woman. I fled to the marshes at the head of the Muskegon, hoping that the Great Spirit would favor me in the hunt, so that I could pay you for your lost son I was not successful. Here is the knife with which I killed your s.n; by it I wish to die. Save my wife and children. I am done." The chief received the knife and, handing it to his oldest son, said, "Kill him " The son advanced, and, placing his left hand upon the shoul- der of his victim, made two or three feints with the knife and then plunged it into his breast to the handle and mimediately withdrew it. Not a murmur was heard from the Indian or his wife and children. Not a word was spoken by those assembled to witness. All nature was silent, broken only by the singmg of the birds. Every eye was turned upon the victim, who stood motionless with his eyes firmly fixed upon his executioner, and calmly received the blow with- out the appearance of the slightest tremor. For a few moments he stood erect, the blood gushing from the wound at every pulsation ; then his knees began to quake ; his eyes and face assumed an expression of death and he sank upon the sand. ' During all this time the wife and children sat perfectly motionless, gazing upon the husband and father Not a sigh or a murmur escaping their lips until life was extinct when they threw themselves upon his dead body, lying in a pool of blood, in grief and lamentations, bringing tears to the eyes of the traders, and causing a murmur of sympathy to run through the multitude of Indians Turning to Mr. Deschamps, down whose clieeks the a W 66 tears were trickling, I said: "Why did you not save that noble Indian. A few blankets and shirts, and a little cloth, would have done it." ''Oh, my boy," he replied, ''we should have done it. It was wrong and thoughtless in us. What a scene we have witnessed." Still the widoAved wife and her children were clinging to the dead body in useless tears and grief. The chief and his family sat motionless for fifteen or twenty min- utes, evidently regretting what had been done. Then he arose, approached the body, and in a trembling voice said: "Woman stop weeping. Your husband was a brave man, and like a brave, was not afraid to die as the rules of our nation demanded. We adopt you and your children in the place of my son ; our lodges are open to you ; live with any of us ; we will treat you like our own sons and daughters ; you shall have our protection and love." "'Che-qiil ocW (that is right), was heard from the assembled Indians, and the tragedy was ended. That scene is indelibly stamped on my mind, never to be forgotten. After the conclusion of the feast, we left in company with a large fleet of birch-bark canoes, occupied by In- dians and their families, returning from their winter hunting grounds to their villages on the shore of Lake Michigan. A fair wind at starting increased to a gale in the after part of the day, and caused a high sea. We reached the Manistee River, which had a strong current, in entering which, we experienced much trouble from the breakers, and some of the boats shipped considerable water, but we all landed in safety. The Indians, how- ever, were not so fortunate, some of their canoes being swamped, and several of the women and children 67 ''■•'-vvne,l. No assistance couW Lc ..endered them though 1"' un mats, were saved; the Indians and SQuavvs r;:;Ton.t '""""*'' '° ''- "^'^' •™" "-' ^^ wiun tiorn turanif? over. Otliers wei'e saveri l>„ ti. oanoes that followed, and passed safelv "n ' '' the midro^M '''*,*""^" "'"'""' '■"'•"'«'• '"-^'-' -"ont ine mwdle of May, being anions- the iirst M „., • * the Indian oonnt.y. (Ither "outms . n "" aftei. th„ u t / : * followed shortly Woods ""^ '^"'*'' f"'" «- I'-ke of the I found letters from n,y n>other awaiting me one of w noh am,onnced the death of n., father, wtiehl" L, »' » after he reached Arkansas. He was taken siet while on the circuit. Having been but n I„T! fiw. '1^ -A , *^ ^'etju our a short time in .•-<^o.l in Norwich, Conn., and in the folowiig^l .skinil protector took hi,i. to Middletown, Conif , Xr he found friends and relatives Hannah, while my r^te: C'C St; Uon, Conn.; thus were tliose most dear to me and to each other, cast upon the world without home o'r pt cctor 1 h,s news made me very sad, and I determLd to return and care for my mother and fan iy and accordingly tendered my resignation, which the Co" pany refused to accept. °'"" I I i 08 Al'l(»r ;i IVnv (Inys* sojourn I wns Hcl.iilrtl midcr Mr. MjiMIm'Ws Io rcct'ivc mikI help coniil llic lurw brounlil in by Mm* dilVcrcnl onlilM. \n\l Ihcni iiilo pJukH, niid get tluMU in rcjuliiu'ss loi- sliipincnt to New York, wliillicr II i(>v \V(>r(' Io p» in ;i vcss^ \ clinrlrrcd mI linlVido foi' IIimI. lunposc. Tliis |>;i(kin! I'nrs was v«'rv hard work, and about one hundred nu-n wcic d(>lail beaten to remove the dust and any moths thai miuhl be in it. The dilVerenl (jualities were lht>n earel'ully seleeled. and each packed into a. tiame. whieb was pnl undei ;: press made of strong;- n|>- rigbl plaid of which wer(> rour-inch opeii- Uij;s. and m lliese W(Me iilaced < i! St anilinir. which liHed the spac<0>el ween Ihe to|) ot the pack and Ihe b(>ad of llie tranuv Wedp's wer(> then inlfodnced b(>tween tho scantling- and lhese(hiven in i)y wooden mauls, as heavy as ont> man cotiid wield, unlil tb<> turs woidd compresH no t(nlher. when Ihe pack was lirndy lied at ends and ci>ntr(> with rawhide ropes. A slave was .'illached to (»acb pack, uiid(>r the ropes, upon which was mark«Ml IIih nunduT. The nunduM*, (pialily and kind ot skins were then coireclly invoiced. Work conunenciMJ at live o'clock in llie mornin.u' and lasied until sunset, with an i)dernussum o how W(Ml r oni> hour at noon. My (hitit>s dit. 1 had to lock ii]) beforo I t to my supper, and after to writo up tho accounts Inch othMi look until nii(biight. This was r real bard work, and lasted of the day. w tlio conuncncemeni for mo o liv(> or six wcndcs. Kobort Sttnvart luul charge of the outside woi-k, while Mr. Crooks was Ihe gent'nil director of the aiTairs of tlie Company. These two giMitienien were wholly unlikt; in m ('haviw.Uw. Mr. (^look H W, t<'m|)(«r, and govonuvl nioro I >« .1, mild Miuii, iviroly out of oo minaiid (Jian by dirl.iii y qui«!t roaHoningand mdd oil. tlioHc Htoni Hcotcl M f. Movvarf was oin- of and >'"<'"» ^vlM» g.',,vn bin (»rd,.rH abniptlv oxp<.t..d tb.n, <,b..y.d to tb. l.(,t.,, y,t ., ,„,„ ^^. ''• ''".'I -f iMunor and fond of (,„, If. }iad a fund of aiuH'doU^H an.l wan ,.x<.,II,.nt <-on.pany. Tbougb bo oft, KMVo unnecvsHary ord,„H ;.nd ro,,uirnn iMviily ..|,nd proinpt.iy, I < belie. H(5 w, tbo clerkH kimw ibat. I the letter, but, tbat if tlieir d formed tb(?y would Am bo le w mg •H kind and Hyiiip.-i- iH (|ni(dc teM.p,.re.d and wbolly IVarleHH, and iH ('ornniandH were t,o be obeyed to nti(>H wimi pjoperly y )er witli kiiKhu m^eiv,. Cull .,,.,iit an.l be treated HM a,nn pei^sisted in pu»h- ""« .t off, hut he succeeded in pnlliuK the boat ashore, and ordered the two men „p into the yar,l. CIoHing the Kute, he told then, they were to be punished, and they, beu,g very .angry, used insulting language, which tluew him into a to vvernig rag(!. Seizing a stii'k ho f I I P 70 *i knocked them both down, nearly kiUinj^ one of them. Dr. Beanmont, the surgeon of the fort, ^vas sent for, who examined the man, and pronounced his skull fractured and the result doubtful. Mr. Stewart was in great distress and himself cared for the man through the night, and was much relieved in his mind when the doctor told him in the morning that he thought the man Avould live, though a slight increase in the force of the blow would certainly have killed him. This Mr. Stew^art was the same man described by Mr. Irving in his "Astoria," as having compelled the captain of the ship in which he was sailing to tack ship and return to an island for his uncle, who had gone ashore while the vessel was becalmed and had acci- dentally been left there. My good friend, John H. Kinzie, resided in Mr. Stewart's family, and though much loved and respected, was often the victim of his temper or humor. On one occasion, when he had finished making out a long invoice, which he had taken unusual care to write nicely and in commercial shape, and supposed he would be highly complimented on its production, delivered it to Mr. Stewart, who carefully looked it over, sheet after sheet, and on the very last page discovered a blot and a figure erased and rewritten. Pointing to them with a ^- .owl, he said, " Do you call this well done i Go and do it over " ; and he tore it into fragments. Poor John was sorely mortified, but was consoled by Mrs Stewart, who had been instructed to do so by her husband, and proceeded to rewrite his invoice, satisfied either of his own imper- fections, or of the disagreeable teni[)er of his master. At another time, an old voi/ageur who perf^'-med the 71 duties of a house-servant for Mr. Stewart, complained to mm that John xvas impertinent to him, ordering him to do thmgs instead of p<,litely asking him to, and said that at times he was tempted to strike him. - You are right old man " said Mr. Stewart. '< The boy is foohsh ; he should always treat an old man with respect ; give him a good thrashing the next time he insults you ; if you do not I shall have to. Can you whip him in a fair fight ?" Yes, sn-r was the reply. - Then do so ; but be sure you strike him with nothing but your fist." When John came to dinner he told him to order the old man to shovel the snow from a little yard in front of Mrs. Stewart s window. '' Make him do it at once, and stand over him until it is done." The old man was busy saw. ing wood in a shed when John started to give him orders As soon as John was out of the way, Mr. Stewart slipped into another room to a window to see the fun John approached the old man, saying, "Old man, you have wood enough sawed ; get the snow-shovel and clean away the snow from the httle yard." The old man made no reply, but placed'his thumb to his nose and made an ex- pressive movement with his fingers. "Did you hear me?" -Yes." " Why don't you mind ?" -J,^ one of your business ; you wait till I get ready." -Ready or not, you have got to clean away the snow right off" ; Who will make me r - I," said John, and, advanc- nig, rather unceremoniously put his hand on the old man's shoulder, who resented by a blow on the nose that started the blood. They fought for some time, to the great enjoyment of Mr. Stewart, and the lesson was not wholly lost either on John or the other clerks. One evening when a number of clerks were sittin- on ! k 11 I i i i , 1 if ' 'I t 72 the stoop just after tc; Jean Baptiste Beanbien came along boasting of bis fast running. Mr. Stewart bad slipped up behind us unperceived u-k) iieaul Beaubien's boasting, and said 1 can beat you la a race from the store to the cooper shop (about tlie distance of a block). "No, you can't," said Beaubien. "I will bet you a boot I can," said Stewart. " Done ; come on," said Beau- bien. So they took their stations and started. Mr. Stewart stopped about half-way, with Beaubien about a rod ahead ; and, corning to the platform, said, " I'll pay the boot ; but what will you do with only one boot f Beaubien insisted that he was to have a pair, but on re- ferring the matter to the parties, they decided the bet was for one only. '' Now," said Mr. Stewart, " we will flip up a dollar to see whether it shall be a pair or none. Here is a dollar. Now, sir; heads I win, tails you lose. Three flips?" "Yes." It was head. " Oh, heads I win." Next time it turns tails. " Oh, tails you lose.' ' "Yes, yes," says Beaubien. Th.-ows again, and this time heads. "Heads I win, Mr. Beaubien." "How the d — 1 ; I lose the head, I lose the tail ; by gar, you make me lose all the time"; and, amid a roar of laughter, Mr. Stewart made his exit. This Beaubien had some education, could read and write, and was very proud of his accomplishments. Com- ing into the office one morning about daylight he said to the bookkeeper, "Mr. Bookkeeper, I write v ry fine, and I make pretty figures. " * ' Is that so ? Well, help me a little; put down on that paper, one; now put down two; there, that's all; now add them together." After some reflection he announced the result as three. ' ' Now, " said the bookkeeper, " put down two; now one; add them to- 78 gether." After pondering over it for a time Beaubien looked up with a radiant countenance and exclaimed, By gar he all make three." and went off pi .foundly impressed with his o^n learnin. and pr<.fi.i.ncy in- math<'matics. ^,^Y^I0mmmmmmm iMmmsr IN A SN(»\V MI'OKM Kl \l'll n|' Id I KAIN, I mii|)|)(im(mI I mIioiiM Im> .'i^.'iiii " uilli iiiv old li'.idri. Mr. I )('M('hMni|»M, .iiul WMM iiiiK'h sui|uiM('(l Mild ^rit>V(>(l, wlicii (li(> (iiii(> Mirivrd (t> srlccl piods Miid ni;iki> rciidy I'or our d(>|>.'irliir(>, to i(M'(M\(» oiH' rvciiiiij;' a smimioiiM ri'oin Mr. ( '|(k»|(riv,'ilt> oIVk-c, wlirii I was jiif'onii( mv ttld po^l. Iml, in (•oinpany vvilli a, Froncliiuaii named .lacciiics hiirraiii, laU(> cliar-^t' ol' an onllil on lilt' Miisk»'p)n Ivivcr, DiilVain roiild iirjMior road iu»r wrilc. hnl had a laip> cNpiMicncc ainonj.; Hid Indian-ion lli(> rcninsnia «d' Midii^an, and I was lo In* ptvta-iu'd hv liis advic»> ni Irading. I waslold Ihal Ihc invtHcew would lio diicclcd 1<> me, and llial I was lo lie llic (•onimaiidor of llio ('X|>t'dilion, aixl nnlVain simply my adviser, and liicn I was nol lo allow liis advice lo jL;ov(>rn ine wIkmi il dilVered materially wilh my own views. Mr. < "rooks also told me liiai Jhonj;h I was yonni;and iiie\|)eriene(>d, lit* was eonrKhMit that wilh Ontrain's honesty and acqnain!ane(> with lUo linlians. I wonid hav(> no diniciilly in ctMidiielinj.:; th(» venlnre; Ihe onllil wonid he small, and we were to f;() in ( Mi 7n Mt h."Kr||;irnpM' "|„Wi(lo" |(, II '"P'll (»!• Mill, JIM W,' (III K' iiioiiMi mC ||i<< Mii^ »H<'. nill IH';M|(|l|)|||..rH Tl ll.'lll iiM'Mixf.v iiiJh'M ii|> Mm. livi-r liM w/iM, iii,j..r,l. ;, |,i||,.,. ,liM,i|.|M,in|,in..|it, 1 W(M'<' In ho rnmilrd voiy iiiiicl O IIIO .•iH r '"•■ WllMllI I ||M«| I'oniHMl I oil Hcnili^ Mr, Kiii/io'H r;iMiJI' '•• Ki'«'Ht iit.<,urliUH-ii(,, lio P-'l '■<'•• Mr. l)..H(«ln„M|.H' iM.nnJHMi.m In h(.,.,m| himI IijmI Miivp vv«'(.||IH ;||, |{(.;i,in ('.'III .•i<' Mr. Kiii/,i(*'H In I r^imii. Hill. .IH tlici u\y j;(hmIh Willi SI food ^nu ()«"|(,Im.|\ Ih|!». Hlur|,(.,i wiMi Mi,. ||| HPCOIld llij. |(, 11,,. |||,|i„„ CHIIilrv HoiiKMd'rny clolliiii^ "• ivj.aiicd .'ind pill, ill ,,n|,.f |,y ,„y n wa.s iio,,Mi(.,„||,,.,.„„|,iv,.^ I ,.,,c,.iv«M| •'' ••"»•' •••'"Hit MiM iiiiddjc or IIIOIH ll riK-'idc" on my W •' ••""('"'I Ml" lilHi IliKlll. .ll, I'oinI, VV/lir.-IMl HOOl "•"'•" •••'"••nii<' my ,!uiion i.'iii (■( ('<><•(, of Ml,. |,.|y, w Mriil my .•iHK(H;i;i|,,. I,, •rii. Al.oiil, l.cM i,,i|,.s ,liHi;i,ii|,, id Mh. •IH .'III liidi.iM vill.^.(., ;,„d MiiMior I .'iri(>r o m;il<(! Ml,. iH'ccHs.'iry |)||,cIuih(. iii.'il»Hciic(.or l,W(. d.iyH ho iclnn„.,| will .'ind Io.'kNkI Willi liidi; Homchc.'in.sroroiir wiiilcr'Msi tiiH, ;iiid ,'ihoiil, oi^hl, hiiHhcJKor I ii r.inoo <'oiii .'iiid IH'CH. 11, lllll .'ill w (' <-oi||(| VV,'l,s;i,Hm.'|,llHI|JiJ)|y, rr.'Mly to |,.;ivc on Mi,> folNiwin^^ i K<'', .•iimI h.'iving p,'ii,i r,,|- i|, W(( ^(tt VVI iioriiinj.;. .Mil "'" 'ii«»rniii;4 ••.•line we r„i,nd Iho wind blu oii^ rroiii Mi(> noilhcjiHl,, ;iri W(>sl, .111(1 vv(^s|,, ;ind i\n- l,cn d.ivH hi N ovcmhci- h.-iii coiiK! hcfoi Wing coming toward me I sn|)posi>(l them to Ixi Indians, hnt was soon rejoice expedition had Iteen one of great succ(>ss ; the goods had all Ihmmi (lisi»os(> they brought th(> thiest and richest of furs— marten, beaver, hear, lynx, fox, otter, antl mink making u}) their collec- tion, Dufrain had a long account to giv(» of trials, disap- l)ointmen(s, and pei'sevei'ance. H(3 was ten days in find- ing the first band of Indians, and these had already l)eeii visited by an oi)i)osition trad(M', wlio cleared the camp of all the valuable furs and told the Indians that no trader would come to Muskegon. The Indians regretted his late ari'ival, as he was a great favorite with them. Though in their progress thus far they had suffered greatly from want of provisions, and had progressed but I 81 ■slowly and with groat fatigue ,,wing to tho d«,,tl, of the Hnow, tl,,.y „„o,-,ni„.„ to puHh on to other can. ,s an., .lis -oof h..r g,x..,.si.ef.,re the other tra,lor sh.,;„.l reach "->"■ ll.y.Mg ,.rovi.l.,.l hin,self an.l party with „ro- v.s..,„„ ,,„, snow-shoes, Dufrain ,les„atchetse,.n,andwi;ovve,.ei' '"""'"' '■l"H'i"K,a...lha,lanaI laneeof f„rs ,Vs time was y,.ry pr,.eions, tl... Collowing day was ,l..v.,t,.,l to - -ting an. paek.ng g Is and n.aking pr.„aralio„s f.,r "";•*"■'■• ' 'I'" "■.■.I to go with this ..xp.,,liti.,n, though "";■",'" '•'■' «"■'"■'"' '' '"I'l ""• 1 .»nl.l not stand the '..•"•.lHlui>s or the .,-.,„rney: that having never travele.l o„ ,,w s.,.. 1 w.,nld have the ,„„,/ , ,„„,,, „, ,„„.„„,^ '"'*••'"' "'."" ''"^^"" """": l'"t t., n,y nnnd anything Ijo'.M IH. e,^.er e„.hn-e.l than another nmnth of such sol .tu.Ie .as I had jnst ,,ass..d through, an.l mal dn r„n„ette ;:;;;;;*;;:'" ""'''■ """"■«■ '" "" •■ -■'■" -». what i lu., On the foll.,wing n.orning w.. ,lepart.,.l, leaving one -|" .n .-harge of the house. Th.,ugh n,y pack watonly hall as heavy as the ,.,h„rs, the day was one of untold nnsery to n,e, never having w.alk.Hl in snow-shoes before K f iU s I t -i 82 The day was clear and cold, the country rough nnd hilly and covered with underbrush, and every few minutes I tripped and fell., and usually landed at full length and buried ray face in the snow, from which I could not arise without assistance from the others. By noon I was com- pletely exhausted, and my load was carried by one of the , others; and though we had made an early start, when we camped at night we had traveled only about six miles. Then came the preparations for thu night's rest. The snow was about two feet deep, and shelter we had none. A place was selected by the side of a large fallen tree, the snow was scraped from the ground, and a place cleared of about six feet by ten, dry .^md green wood cut and piled up to the windward of the log, and a fire struck with flint and steel. Hemlock boughs were cut for bedding, and these covered with a blanket, to keep them down and in place; then the packs were placed at one end to protect our heads from the wirid, and our beds were complete. During our march we had killed two porcupines, and these were dressed and toasted on sticks, and with our pounded parched corn made a very delicious supper. And as we had eaten iiothing since early morning good appe- tites gave additional zest to the repast. After supper, a smoke, and then to bed, all lying together on the hemlock beds, covered with the two remaining blankets, with our feet to the fire, which we replenished through the night. I slept but little, being kept awake by the aching of my legs, the muscles of which were badly swollen. Before day all were up, and breakfast was made from the remnants of the previous night' s supper, and by the time it was light we were ready to resume our journey. 88 I ^v^s so stiff and lame that I could scarcely walk, and Dufram advised me to return, he offering to go part way with me, and there meet the other man, whom I should send from the house. I at first thought I would do so, but the recollection of the lonely month of anxiety I had passed there soon determined me to go on with the party, and all Dufrain's arguments failed to change my purpose. Every step caused me suffering, but as I warmed up the pain by degrees left me. 1 had caughi the knank of throwing out the heels of my snow-shoes by a slight turn of the foot, and my falls were less fre- quent and when we camped at uight we estimated that we had made during the day about three leagues or nin,. miles. During the day we had cut from a hollow tree two rabbits, and these with corn furnished our supper Our camp was made as on the previous night. In th. mornmg we consumed the remainder of our stock o^ corn, as we expected to reach an Indian camp bv night and made our usual early start. Snow soon commenced falling, and continued hard all day, and as the weather had moderated the snow stuck to our shoes, making them heavy and the walking ver^ tiresome ; we failed to find the Indians, and camped fo, the night with nothing to eat. The muscles of my toes were very sore, and on removing my moccasins and neips, I found my feet nmch swollen, and at th. tops where the strap that held my snow-shoes was fastened they were red and bruised, sure signs of - mal dn raquette^^^ The morning found me in a sad condition the swelling much increased, and the tops of my feet s<. sore that i could not bear my snow-shoes without great 84 I J pain; still, on we went, I hobbling along as best I could. The snow still fell, and about noon we reached the Indian camp, and were provided with dinner by a squaw, and did ample justice to the bear meat and corn soup which she provided. In the evening the Indians returned from hunting and trapping, bringing a good supply of furs, and the following forenoon was employed by them i i celling their furs, and settling with Dufrain for the goods ne had sold to them on a previous trip. We remained in this camp five days, and I was very kindly treated. The old squaw poulticed my feet with herbs, and for two days I practiced every hour or so on my snow-shoes, so that when we left these hospitable people I felt well and strong, and had no trouble in keeping up with the others, nor was I tired at night. We camped in the usual manner, having made fifteen miles that day. Just at dark of the next day, as we were preparing our camp, we heard the bark of a dog, and knew the Indians were near; taking up our march, we soon reached their camp, where we remained for two days. A grand feast was prepared by the Indians, partly in honor of our visit, at which all the meat and broth set before us must be eaten, and the bones saved and buried with appropriate ceremonies, as an offering to the Great Spirit, that he might favor them in the hunt. The offer- ing was a fat bear, over which a great pow-wow was first hau by all the inmates of the lodges, after which it was carefully skinned, cut into small pieces, and put into the kettle in the presence of all. During the cooking, speeches were made by some of the older Indians invoking the aid of the Great Spirit, 8S and when cooked H-e meat was carefully removed from the kettles and distributed in wooden bowls to each ind" vidua present in such quantities.as their age and capacity foeatmg would seem to warrant, and all receive their just proportion. Then the oil was skimmed off and it and the broth divided in a like manner; a hlngj .-as e livered by the head of the lodge, asking the Good anTfr ef ; '" " *"" '"" """"^ «>em well and fiee from harm ; and then the eating commenced. ai ln7 7^' ^"''" ""^ ^ '"'-S^'' P°'-«°» than mv age and capacity demanded, but Dufrain told me ihat'l mus eat all the meat and drink all the oil and broth and leave the bones in my bowl ; that a failure to do so would be considered an insult to the Indians and an offense to the Great Spirit. " But,- I said, •' they hate given me more than the others, and it is impossible for me to swallow it all." Dufrain replied: "They have given you the best portion as a compliment ; you must receive It, and eat and drink every bit and;veryZ otherwise we shall have troMble." "Well vou mnl' help me, then," I said. "No," he replied '"I Tn'' help you; each person must eat all that is given him and will not be allowed to part with any portion of itTl am sorry for you, as well as for myself, and wish it had Sm: ^e '"'"'"' "' ^ '"' '"••• ""' ' *^" -' "-e ^ It was between eight and nine o'clock at night and he fire, Which furnished the only light in the lodg Z low, and my location wa. in the back part of the W where my movements could not be easily detected 1 mv mir"; "'"'' " '""^' ""^""^ ^"^^^'«» «^«" to raj mind as being ray only chance for disposing of a 86 portion of the consents of my bowl, and T determined to attempt it. I fel that extreme caution was necessary, and no little dext^nty required to slip the meat into the hood unobserved; but I took the first opportunity, and succeeded in safely depositing a piece without detection even by Dufrain, w' o sat next to me. I proceeded eat- ing slowly, so that no notice might be taken of the diminished quantity in my bowl, and soon succeeded in depositing another piece, and then a third, and ended by eating the last piece. There still remained the oil and broth, and I feared that my now overburdened stomach could UQt stand this ii idition to its load. The grease had soaked through the cloth of my capote, and I could feel it trickling down my hack, and I told Dufrain, in Indian, that I must go out, and asked him not to let my bowl be tipped over while I was gone. The Indians laughed, and I hastily made my exit, threw the pieces of meat to the dogs, and then, thrusting my fingers down my throat, endeavored to produce an eruption which should provide room for what I still had to swallow; failing in this attempt, however, I returned to my place in the lodge, and by persistent effort finally succeeded in swal- lowing the remainder. The ceremony of gathering the bones was then gone through with by the head of the lodge picking them up very carefully and depositing them in a bowl, then another harangue, and we were left to chat and barter as suited us best. From these Indians we learned of two camps situated in opposite directions, and from them engaged a guide to go with one of our men to one camp, and from there to another, we had before known of, and to return home, 87 where ^ were to meet him. Diifrain, being ^vell acq Mi. ted with the rounfrv, felt confident that he could go (I ecMy to the ofher camp in one day's travel, and I deciaed to go witli hi. V , ^e lay down it was aowing liard, which coni.nuod through the night. We aroso as usual before dawn of day, and partook of a nice dish of coni so which had been prepared for us by the good squaw in whose lodge we had slept, and as soon as possible started. The snow continued falling, and being soft stuck to our snow-shoes and made the traveling very hard and fatiguing, and b^ ^en o'clo.-k I discovered that my companion was in doum as to our whereabouts, and at noon we lialted near a large fallen ti-'^o to strike fire for a smoke. When I asked him if we should reach the camps that night, his reply was that we should have reached the river by that time, which would have been more than half way. He said he did not know where we were, the woods looked strange, but perhaps that was because there was so much snow on the trees. It had then stopped snowing, though with no appearance of clearing off. Soon after we started the storm again commenced harder than ever, and I clearly saw that we were not going in the right direction, and ventured to tell Dufrain so. He was very passionate, and replied sharply that if I knew the way better than he I had better take the lead; thus rebuked, I followed on in silence. About four o'clock we found two tracks of snow-shoes. "Ah," said Dufrain, "you see we are right; these tracks are of today; there is new snow on them; had they been of yesterday they would have been covered over so we could not see them; they were made by hunters from the camps this morning,but we can't go further than the I IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) A ■^ C/i f/- 1.0 i.l '- K 111112.2 iM mil 2.0 1:25 III 1.4 1.8 1.6 riiuiUgiupiliU Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 372-4503 ^9) ^< V \ ^ 6^ ""^'^ ^^^ ' patli which would load U8 to thoii lodges, hut wore not capahlo of making tlio effort to save ourselv(^s. My own reflections of the ii^sponsihility resting upon me, and thoughts of my widowed mother, hn)ther and sisters, finally n(»rv«Hl me to make an effort. I told Dufrain that we must get up an('. go to tlie camps, and that T would go and recon- noitre, find the path and r*)turn for him; to my great dis- appointment, however, I could find no snow-shoe tracks; hut after careful search I divscovenvl some small saplings hroken off just ahovi^ the snow, and could, hy the feel- ing as 1 stepped, discover that there was a path under the newly fallen snow. I followed it for a short distance, when I saw a hl-"«e on a tree, and knew that I was going in the right direction to find the camps. I returned for my companion, whom I found sleeping, and seeming not to have moved during my ah8(»nce. With gnvit difficulty I aroused him and put on his snow-shoes, and then, hav- ing pla<'ed hoth packs upon the scaffold, started on the march. 1 had much trouhle in keeping the path, which I followttl(» ol" Wiit(Mand pljiccd over tlio (iro to boil, and Hoon aH it vvaH roady ^avo mo a vory Hniall (piantity, about balf ji pint, and ropIacHul tb(^ kcttio ovor Uw t'we. I Hupposed I was bun^ny, tbougb I (bd not fool ho, and aup|>inf>- a, bttlo from tb«> \vood(>n disb found it diflicult to Hvvallow. TiiiH friy^btonod mo and I lay down and 8lopt. I waM aAVJikoncd by tb(^ squaw, wbo gavo mo moro 80U1) from tJjo ki^ttlo, wbioli lat(> witba. rolisb and asked for nior(>. " No," sbo said, " lie down and shn^p, and I will awake you and giv(> you more after awbilo." Tins I did, and was a,wakon(>d afttM* djirk rofi(>sbod but very aore and lame; took wbat sou[) was givt'u mo, and still wanting more; sbo refused me, saying, "after a littlo"; and tbat sbo kmnv best bow to relievo mo. I noticed tbat tlu^ cbildren fre(piontly wont out of doors, and tbat tbero was a look of anxiety on tbe coun- tenances of botb tbe Indian and squaw, wbicb Ithougbt was on my account; but asking, be ropHod tbat bis oldest son wont out early in tbe morning to try to kill somotbing for tbom to oat, and tboy wore fearful some accident bad befallen bim. Up to tbis time I bad not spoken of Dufrain, because I saw tbore was no one to go for bim, and bad tbere been, he could not bav(> boon readied before dark. Tbe moon would rise about midnigbt, and tben 1 bad determined to ask the squaw to go with mo for him, though I had no idea of finding bim alive. Tboy wore well acquainted with him, and orx my telling them of his situation the squjiw parched what com she had left, pounded it and got it ready, and we made preparations to go after bim. 98 'P T] H) H(|imw und her liUHbaiid both thought that mn l.Hd KoiH^ to th(. Hv.m- to h1< onVrinjr, ,,,„a tho hoy mmt fast for two days Tho fatJKM- sat up and boat a (h-uni; tho hoy hhu.konou liiH facH3, tli(, lH,ar was skinn(Ml, and jirop., rations made 'or n, tcvist, though foi-tunatoly tho foast was not to ho similar to th.. ono I had .'ittond,.! shortly hofons wlum nil was to ^)o oaten. Aftor hearing who I was. and that Jaro ii(;ilioii oriMin^u sliildiorii, I'lMi'lrss Iclluw, this ir|inl:il ion lM>iii,<; ('oMliniicd hy his ]ii;iiiv sens, aiitl I ihil not hkr lo (-oiiiii.iind him lo ^u. |l(>i('lt>r<>i(' hf h.'nl shown n ;;oo(l disposition, wiisoht'dicnl and wilhnj;, and scrincd to taUi- inon* iiitcicst in thoox- )>t'(ht ion, and hail a L;rt'alrr dcsiit' lorj^ood irsulls, than an\ oi' I h*< ot hi'i' nun. and I did not hl\i< lo anpT him it' it coidd h>' avoided. I son^dit a |>i'ivati> o|)|ioi'|,nnity ol' ronsnhin};' his wile, who conlirnird all ho had said, ii'inaiUinL;, ho\vi'\(>r. that slio Iraicd her Imshand coidd not rolVain I'loni joinini^ in the ('(M'tMiioiucs and p'llinf;' dinnU with Iho oIIhts. Ih'r views decided me to accede to Cosa's wishes, and I said to him: " Now , ( "osa, if we taUcIhe liltie Ue^" and ^^'o to nionow', will yon promise to stick i»y me. and not taste a drop^" lie pronnscd, and that ni,L;ht two hales (»f merchandise, with the lillU* 1 wo- uallon Uei;' of l.ijLihw ines, watered one third, were |»r(>- parcd; and il daylii;ht in i he nsornin;^- I he pony was hrouf^ht from the woods, saarin.L; ol' the camj*. I told Cosa that we wonld till onr small kcj;', mi.xed with hair w.iter, and hide the other, so that the Indians tli'idvinj;' Ihal was .all wcIkkI wonid ix'tlie sooner salis- llod. To this heasscidcd, s.iyinj;' it. was wise. Thoni;h the liii;iiwincs had heen dilnted one third it was still ipiilc sti'oni;'. llavini;- no t'nnnel, how to rurlhcr mi.\ i< was a (lilcnnna. l»nl W(^ so(»n lonnd a way. We wonld <]raw a moulhtid from the lai'j;«M' ke^' and s[)it it into the smallei-, and then l;ikt> a moulhfnl of water iind tfansl\M' I '.»!» ;;;, ", "'•;'■•■> ""-", ..p,.,.,: "'•" """■■■ " !'■■ ■-"»-'■.■ I,.,v l„.r,„,. ..i,,,! „,'^ "•'"""; ";■' ^'■■"'^^' '■■■'• M. ii,in,., ';;■', '',''7.';':''' '■"""•"■■• • > «„,„.i ,,,„,, " ';"'" ' |."ssiM,.. ,„„, ,i,„ ,„„,„„,,,„ ,., !•:'■'■■''•'" 'iM.Mi.MH Hi,i.i, w,.,.,. i,.,„i,.,-,.,i „„, ,.„,, „,„„, '"■"'"■'■■■'«"".""•' — .,■.,. ,.„, ,.,„.|v .,„„■„ I wi I;:;:;:',;;; ''"■'■ ^ .<'-.i..iMi,,,i., , ,„„„,„„,,„, u,„ ;'''"',"■'" ' "-^'.v'"'! I" s,.ll a li(,(,l,.. s„ I ,.v. ";■'"'' ^' |.n..nis,. IV,„„ Cos,-, ,„ ,,.,„;,„, will,,,,,. ,„|l„. "lP';M„l„oM„,|,,„k ,,,„,, ,,„,,.„„„ ,.,, e„ll„„i„,. "■;'""", "-M-.vl..nli„,.x,.,„„„,.,„. 1,1 ,,i„,/"'- '"^'"■''"■" "- "I ■'-■•" n„. ,„,,..,, Will, r,,., ;";'" "M 1 1„. s,...„r,.M ,„■„„.,.„,.„ , ,,„,,, J ;';""■■',;■":'■'■'■''''•"-'■■ «•-• i u,,. .,i,.„. ley I :i B ;3 i! 100 would go and take it; and being refused they went with him in search of it. Being disappointed in their attempts the Indians began to separate and go to their lodges, and soon all was (luiet in the camp.. As my feet were wet I pulled off my moccasins and laid down in a wigwam with my feet to the fire. Cosa still importuning' me for more drink, and I positively i-efusing, he, with two druken companions, after a long search, succeeded in finding tlie concealed keg. The squaw who assisted me in hiding the " fire water" had watched them, and .juickly informed me of their discov- ery. I ran out into the snow barefooted, and succeeded in reaching the place before they could remove it from the scaffold. I told the two Indians that it was my property, and not theirs; that I should give them no more, and forbade them to touch it. They desisted, but Cosa, to show his independence, advanced to take the keg, when I seized him by the throat, threw him on his back, and placing my knees on his stomach, choked him so he could neither move nor speak, and held him thus until the squaw had removed the keg and again hidden it. I would not let him up until he promised me to lie down and sleep ; for a time he refused to promise; but as I only released my grip upon his throat long enough for him to answer, and then tightened it with renewed vigor, he was soon glad to promise, when I allowed him to arise and conducted him to my own comfortable quarters, covered him up, and lay down by his side. Cosa was considerably injured, and after becoming sober slept but little. I myself kept wide awake until daylight, when I arose, got the pony from the woods, loaded him. and as soon as we had eaten our breakfast li till ' 101 we departed homeward, picking up the keg on the way. Cosa was very hoarse from his severe choking, and very much mortified and humbled, and begged me not to tell what had taken place when we reached home; he was afterward very faithful and attentive to his duties. In the month of November I made a trip to Chicago, and had a very delightful visit of a week in Mr. Kin- zie's family, received my clothing which I had left there on my previous visit, and returned to my post. During the fall of this year I made a cache in the sand- hills at the mouth of the Kalamazoo River, in which I concealed m;uiy valuables, and early in the month of March following I took one of the men and went in a canoe for the articles. We found everything safe and in good condition, and having loaded them into the canoe started home. The weather was very severe for the season, and the snow still deep, which" made our camp- ing very unpleasant, and the current being swift, we had much difficulty in ascending the rapids, at the' foot of which we had made our night's camp. I had col- lected some fine mink, otter, and other furs at two In- dian camps on the route, and these, added to the articles taken from the cache, made a very valuable load. I took my position in the bow of the canoe, leaving my man to steer. AVe had passed the rapids, but were still in a veiy strong current, when we came to a fallen tree lying in the river which formed a partial eddy. In pushing around the ti-ee the strong current struck the boat sidewise, caused it to carpen, and I lost my balance. To prevent the canoe from upsetting I allowed myself to go overboard and swam down the river; Ji I i \ i I i' ■' 'SI 102 the man quickly turning the liead of the boat down stream, we both landed at the bottom of the rapids at the same time, where we found the fire of our previous camp still burning. After I had dried my clothing we again ascended, and reached home the following day without further mishap. Nothing unusual occurred at my post that winter fur- ther than I have related. I made a call on Rix Robinson, who w^as a trader on Grand Eiver above Grand Rapids, also in the employ of the American Fur Company, and my nearest neighbor. It was in the month of January, a few days after a thaw which had flooded the river, and when I reached the South Branch of Grand River I found the bottoms flooded, but frozen hard enough to bear me up, the river very high and filled with floating ice, and no means of crossing, and I had either to return or swim for it. Though the day was very cold, I chose the latter, un- dressed, and having tied my clothing in as compact a bundle as possible, rested it on the back of my neck, holding it in place by a string between my teeth. I plunged in and soon landed on the opposite shore, and dressing myself as quickly as possible, I started on a run and soon became thoroughly warmed. It was growing late, but being on the trail leading to Robinson's I felt sure of reaching his house, and arrived on the bank of the main river opposite to it about nine o'clock. I hallooed a number of times, and began to despair of being heard, and thought I should be com- pelled to camp for the night almost at the door of my friend. I gave my last and strongest yell, aroused a Frenchman, who came down to the shore and answered 'M V. me, saying, in Indian, "Can't come over," and explain- ing that there was too much floating ice to cross. My answer, in French, telling who I was brought from him the reply, "Wait, we will come over"; after a short time two men came for me in a boat, and I soon found myself beside a warm fire in my friend's cabin; supper was ordei-ed, to which I did ample justice. Robinson was much surprised at the account of my crossing the river. I spent a few days very pleasantly, and before leaving arranged with my host to wait at the mouth of the river for me on his way back to Mackinaw, so that we might proceed from there in company, I promising to be at the- meeting place at an appointed day, not later than the tenth of May. Leaving Robin- son's cabin at early dawn I reached my own post soon after dark, having traveled sixty miles. I had made a successful winter, and disposed of all my goods except a few remnants, and about the twentieth of April aban- doned my post and descended the river, stopping for a day or two at the foot of the rapids, where a large num- ber of Indians were assembled to catch sturgeon. In due time I reached Grand River, where I found Mr. Robinson awaiting me, and after a rest of six or eight days we left for Mackinaw. We were among the first to arrive, and after settJing my accounts, I was again detailed to the fur-packing house for the season. I had received letters from my mother telling of her loneliness and of her great desire to see me. and felt very badly over the news these had conveyed; and when Mr. Crooks told me I was to again return to my post on the Kalamazoo River, I asked to be dischai-ged, giying as a reason that my mother was a widow, Mud mv brotliei' 104 ;iii," giving my reasons therefor; and these, aided hy .Mr. Deschamps' solicitations (he claiming that he had only consented to part with me lor a year, expecting me to return and take charge of the post on the Illinois Eiv(>r), induced Uv. Crooks— though reluctantly— to give his conscMii to my going out with my old friend and conu'ade. In due cours(> of time our "'hrigadc'"' started, the twelve hoats led hy Mr. Deschanii)s and the old familiar hoat song. 1 was again with my old com- panions, all of whom gave luo a cordial welcome. Day after day we pursued our voyage, the ever monotonous row. row, heing varied hy no incideius of interest, until we re-ached Chicago. We had made an unusually quick tri}), having heen delayed hy adv(M-se winds hut two or thi-ee days on the entire joiu-ney. Again I was rejoiced with a hopie in Mi-. Kinzie's family, and remained there for several days, until the ''hi-igade" again moved for the Illinois River. The water in the rivers was unusually low this season, and in places the Desplaines could he crossed on foot without wetting the sole of the shoe; or, more properly Kin Hpiiiikitig, the skin of tho foot, as covering was out of fashion, or had not come in, at tliat time. Wo were compelled to cany our goods and effects from the South Branch to the Desplaines on our hacks, leaving our empty boats to pass through the usual chan- nel from the South Branch to Mud Lake, and througli that to the West End, and through tlie other chami.^l. Having completed the portage to the Desplaines and en- countered the usual fatigu(>s in descending that river, without unusual delay or accid(Mit we mached Bureau Station, where I had passed my first winter. Mr. Be(n>3au was still in charge, though he was nuicli mor(? fe(5l)le than when T last saw him. nor had his temper and disposition und(>rgoiie any cliange for the hettei-, but on the contrary he was more iiritnble and disagreeable, if this was possible. My friend Antoine was nlso there and delighted to see me, and we spent many hours together, talking over old times and recounting oui- hunting ex- pei-ience of the winter of ISbS-ll). He had grown to maidiood and was fully able to perform th-; duties and endui-e the hardshii)s of a voyageur, in which capacity Ml-. ])esc;hamps engaged him for that post. He was greatly (lisapi)ointed when he learned that I was not to winter with them but was to take the position of trader at a new post further down the river; he applied to Mr. Deschami)s to be transferrtnl to my post, l)ut this was re- fused him, Mr. Deschamps stating to me that he feared I would not have the obedience from him that my posi- tion required, owing to our previous intimate relations in which he had been both my companio: . -id equal. 1 saw the justice of this and acquiesced in his decision. Before parting, however, Antoine and I took a day's I i'^ ^ 1 I lOfi hunting togotlior, tnunping ovor ground which had be- come 80 fjunihar two yoars befon^ and recalling many pleasant incidents of those liapi)y days. After resting a few days, and selecting the goods and luen to be h^ft at that i)ost, we proceeded on our way, making our next halt at Foit Clark (Peoria), where we found several families had located, among whom were Mr. Fulton, the first pioneer settler at that point, who still resides in that county ; a Mr. Bogardus, biother of (general Bogardus, of New York, a highly intelligent gentleman, and his estiinabk^ and accomplished wife. Two miles below, at a point now known as Wesley City, was Mr. Beason'n ])ost, and there we remained about one w(H>k, during which time I went almost daily to thi^ fort, WOr.F STOUIKS. A melancholy incident occuri-ed tiiere during the win- ter. On the river bottom opposite Benson's post were a half-dozen or more lodges of Pottawatomies. An aired squaw, accompanied by a young granddaughter, was returning froiu an absence from the camp, and when at Kickapoo Creek they were atta(?ked by a large female timber wolf and her cubs. The httle girl escaped, and running home reported to her brother, who innnediately started to the old squaw's rescue. On reaching the l)lace he found the wolves had killed his grandmother and wei-e feasting upon lier flesh. Though armed only with a tomahawk and knife, he boldly attacked the animals and succeeded in driving them away from her body, but not without being himself badly bitten, and. 1()7 indeed, I doubt not he would have departed for the " i»«'^PPy hunting grounds " by the same route his grand- inotlier liad taken had lie not been reinforced by his friends, who had learned of his peril. It is rarely that a wolf will attack a human being, unless closely pressed or famishing with hunger. I re- member that once when Noel Vasseur and myself were eating our lunch at Blue Island, while our horses were grazing, a wolf came so close to ns that Vasseur toma- hawked him. Another time, Jacques Jombeaux and myself had (•amped for the night, and before lying dowji I went to look after my horse, which I had spanceled on the prairie. I found him feeding quietly, and returning, I noticed what I supposed to be an Indian dog following me. I called and whistled to him, but he paid no atten- tion to the noise. When I reached the camj) I told Jacques that there was a camp of Indians neai-, as I had been followed by one of their dogs, and that he must hang up the i)rovisions. He hung them on a sapling close by our camp fire. We were lying with our feet close to the fire when my supposed dog came up and put his forefeet on the sapling in his efforts to get our meat. The light of the fire showed him to be a prairie wolf, and enabled Jacques to shoot him with his rifle. I knew of an Indian who was treed by a pack of wolves, and there kept for eighteen or more hours, until his comrade, becoming alarmed at his absence, found and relieved him. We left Reason's and proceeded on our way to other stations down the river. Mr. Des(;hami)s decided to f fj. 'm 11 ! - h lOS estal)lisli ;i mw post at the mouth of Ciookod Oreek, and to locate me ill charge. We Koon agreed iii)on the spot on which to huild my house, and my outfit having heen unloaded Mr. Bescliamps proceeded on his way. ^yo first constructed a pen of logs, the sides of whicli \vei(> about six feet liigh, within which was packed my goods; these were covered with sails and tarpaulins. Our camp was made on the south side of the inclosure, both for convenience and the better protection of the goods. These arrangements having been completed we proceeded imnKMliately to build a good-sized trading house. Before reaching this place I had felt symptoms of ague; loss of ap[)etite with slight chills; still I managed to keep up, and my house-building progressed so well that by the time of Deschamps' return it was up and tb(^ store i)art covered, so that the goods could be moved into it. Mr. Deschamps thought my symptoms denoted bilious fever and prescribed for me accordingly. My fever continued to increase, and I became very sick, was unable to sit up, and daily grew worse. Two Frenchmen, who had been shooting geese and swans at Portage de Sioux, came down the Illinois River in a large pirogue, on their way to St. Louis to market their game. Though their boat was heavily laden, by promising to pay for the game they would be compelled to leave to make room for me, and also to pay liberally for my passage, I succeeded in persuading them to take me as a passenger to St. Louis, where I felt compelled to go to consult a physician, and their ar- rival seemed providential. While the men were eating I made preparations for my 101) (U'parturo. Calling my iiitorprottM', I told him of my de- termination, and instructed him that slnmld 1 fail to re- turn hy a certain day he should send word to Mi-. Des- champs and ask for orders. My men went to work with a will moving and repacking the game so as to give sufficient room for me in the boat without leaving any part of the load, and I was carried and phuxnl in the boat, in as comfortable a position as could be found. The wind Avas from the south, and the river very rough; the motion of the boat caused mo to vomit excessively and I soon became uncoiis(;ious. The men carried me along until they came to a settlor's cabin near the bank of the rivei-, nnd supposing me to be dying, took me ashore, left me there, arid pursued tlieir journey. T do not know how long I was unconscious, l)ut when I awoke I found myself in bed, while a young girl was sit- ting by I'iinning me. She jumped u^) and called licr mother, avIio coming in, cautioned me not to get excited, gave nie some tea, and while I was driidving it told me where I' wns and how 1 came there. Frcmi tluit time I improved rnpidly, and in the course of a week or ten days 1 was al)le to start cm foot for my trading house, about thirty-five nules distant, wliicli I reached in two days, nuich to the joy and astonishment of my men. l can not conc^eive \viiy I have lost from my memory the name of those hospitable people, who took me into their house ?»■ I nursed me so kindly, but so it is. and tlieir name I can not remember. I never saw them but once afterward, I found my house was nearly completed. I had a good appetite, and increased daily in strength, so that I was soon able to hunt on the river bottom, ranging two or 1 t no tliit'c inih's JVoin til,. Iioiisf. One hiinlii, ^',,v«'Ml) iji.U" 1 Ntiirtrd out for n liirkcv limit, niul K'l' iMoin- soon "illlH' JICroNS some I'lvsli lioisc I iiicivs which I siipixjs.Ml v,(Mt' Ihosc of llldi ii:i limit's, :ni(l <-!iV('lh<"iM iio riirthci' thiHi-iht; hut at i\ litth' nvrk I s:i\v ilic titicksiiuMin, jindln :i iihkM y spot 1 iiolicod tlit'l'ivsh iinpivssioii of;, liors.'-shop, mikI so t'ol- lowrd (iM-ir tiiiil, :iii(l .-irtcr ;il.oiil n niih> li:iv<-l cMni.' up with the iJ(hT,s iiiid round th.-ni t(» he Mr. .),,hii Wood •'■'>. <»ii llK'ii- w.'iy to tht' iiiilitiiiv tnict to and Mr. Tihl lorjitc soldiers' hmd-uiirruiits. 1 thoii,re not vs niiide 51 stiiiiiue cir- cuit I'or persons kiio\vin;:>- their wheivjibonts. I led them to my lious«. ami i)repiii'e(l Tor tliem tlie hest meal in my povviM-, of which theyjite very heiirtlly nnd witli decided lelish. (ioveinor Wood ]i;is often told me tliatit wsisthe best meal he ever ate, 1 am (piite williii^-to believe it w good, and Hatter mysell" that (he cooking- 1 did in tl days, if not in the sty]<' of a French cook is in tJlose was, for plain have nev(M' tasted of lose food, deservini;- of ,<;-reat prais(\ 1 1 iiny roast tui-key that seemed to me so excellent as 1 1 fat wild ones killed and prepared by my own hands. I used to lian^- tliem in front of my lai«»e 1ii-e place sns- liendedl)y a string, and .iiently tuiii them with a long stick until th<\v were nicely brown(>d, and then with fat jaccoon or bear meat Itoiled, 1 had a, dinner lit for a kinu'. My iK'w found friends hd't me in the a fternocm though I tried liai-d to detain them; like most of tlie Yankees" of those early davs tliey stayed. J^oth of these aentl enterpi'ising could not be emen located in Quincv, Illi- nois, became prominent citizens, and finalv died thei Mr. Wood was at one time ( ■e. Tovernorof the State of Illi- Ill nois, iind I t'Vci- coiisidcivd him iis one of my waniieMt i'l'ieiuls. My hoiis.' wjis soon ('(>mi)let('(l mikI riiiiiisli«Ml with floor, thive-Icov.-. St .,|N, tJihlc, jiiul hunks, nil niiidnot' i>iinrji- eons. It wiis li<-hh'(l hy a \vin(h)\v in tiic south end, nijidn of two sheets of roolscai) i^iper nictdy greased; iind .vith aline hiri-iM'lay (;himney that would take in a, six-l'oot log, 1 IVIt that file cold or storms of winter 'oiild luivc no terrors for uie. I was now lully recovered in henlth, and all my care Jind anxiety w:is for the success ol* the winter's trade. ATT.VrKKI. MY AN INDIAN ALKXIS sT. MAKTIN- 8ij.;Ki'i\(i mi;ai:. ■'''"' '"'""'"' "•"'■'■ 'vWI,.„.,|u.i,„„.| „-i(l, ,|„.„,, „, k„„„ Hliom toliirsi. „ ". ""r ""'■ '■"■^^ '" -'>■'■ "'" '"'li.-H. I...nl,.>-s « „n "''*•;"/""'"'""""> •■ - H,a(, ,1,.,. .nitht, ,ive """'■:.■;.'""" •" '. --1. m,l,.,,l. it womM W r" "'"'"•""• ''■ i',i,|,„„t the n«.e»Hn.,y,.l,„i,i„„, suns, „n,l ,„„„„i ,. t|„. ,•„„ ■l.hons „f this ,.,,.,lit w,.,.o tl.it tl,e8« mlv„„c™ ,l,„ul,l I,. imul lr„„, ,|„. |„,M Is of tl.eir first wint,..'. l,„„t l,„t sliouW ,l,.y f„i| u, p,,v, „rt,.,. |,„vi„g devoted .11 il.ei,. u,'s tor the |„„i,ose. .,,,1 shown . disposition to ,ct Ixmes ly, the hnlnnee „u, enrrie,! over to the next year, bnt this l,al,,nfe was seldom paid. Tlie debtors .■ens.,n_ed that, having appropriated the entire proceeds " their season s Hunt to the iiquidation o( their iiidebt- e.lness, ,t was the fault of the Great Spirit that they had ..ot oeen able to pay in full, „,„d ,o tin v .o„..,-de..ed the .lebt ..aneeled. We were veiy caret, 1 ..h. we trusts! ' (112) ^-% 118 W*^ HatiMfled ourselves first, that t]u^ person's int.mtions were honest, nn.l thjit he was industricnis nn.l prrsev^M-- ing; and, K(r(,nd. that he was a skilled luinter and trnpiuT, mid knrvv wlmre to fin.l K^nie in ai)undance. If Ih. lacked in tlu-se (inallflcations lie was deemed unworthy of credit, at h^ist to a large amount. I was applied to tor credit by an Indian whom my interpreter saiu - lu^ver paid," or if he paid at all, it wan, only a, portion of his indebtedness. I accordingly refused :r,n, .t which lie was greatly angered and threatened revenge. One niorning shortly after, I was sitting alone before the hre m my cabin, on a three-legged stool made of p.inche my left arm just in time to arrest the blow ' The handle of the tomahawk striking my arm, it was thrown fron. his hand and fell on the flo<,r dose to the fire-place Ihe corner of the blade cut through my c-ap ami into my forehead-the mark of which I ^till carry -while my arm was temi)orarily paralyzed from the blow I Hprang to my feet just as he reached to his l,elt to draw a knife, and throwing my arms around his bodv, -ra.sped r> vr left vM-ist with my right hand, and held him so firmly that he could not draw his knilV^ I allowed him to throw me down on the floor, and roll me over and over in his exertions to liberate, himself and reach his knife, while I made no exertions except to keep mv grip. I bled profusely from the wound on my forehead and my eyes were frequently blinded by the blood' 114 ' ,1 i ; which I wiped off as well as I could on his naked body. It was fully live minutes before my arm began to recover sensitiveness, and a much longer time before I recovered its full use. My grasp was weakening, yet I clung on afraid to trust to my lame arm. My opponent was breathing very heavily, and I knew he was exhausting his strength in his efforts to rid himself of my embrace, while I was saving mine. When my arm had sufficiently recovered, and we had rolled up to where the stool lay, I let go of him, and seizing the stool struck him a stunning blow upon the head, which I followed up with others on his head and face, until he showed no further signs of life, when I seized him by his long hair and dragged him out of doors, whooping for my men, who soon made their appearance. •Just then^is squaws appeared on the scene. He had come ■on his pony, telling them he was going to kill Hubbard, and they had followed on as rapidly as they could on foot. They bathed his head with cold wat^r, and, greatly to my relief, soon restored him to consciousness. I reflected that I had punislied him too severely, and regretted that I had done more than to strike him the iirst blow and then disai-m him. My men were greatly alarmed, and especially so was my interpreter, whom I sent to the chief of the band to exjDlain the case. The chief returned with my man and blamed me for injuring him so severely, thinking it would result in his death. However, he used his influence with the band in my favor, telling them the goods were mine, and that I had a perfect right to refuse to sell them on credit and to defend myself when attacked, and they soon separated for their winter hunting grounds, much to my relief. 115 The injured Indian did not recover so as to do any hunt- ing that winter, and occasionally sent me a message demanding pay for his injuries, which I positively refused, much to the dissatisfaction of my confidential man. The winter -assed and we were ready to break up daily expecting . rders from Mr. Deschamps to start on the return trip to Mackinaw. The Indians had returned from their hunting grounds and were camped some five or six miles from us. They had mostly paid up, though the wmter had not been a successful one for them. The chief was a young man, and had become very friendly to me. He advised me to give presents to the Indian I had injured ; but I still persisted in my refusal, determined to risk the consequences rather than to pay a man for attempting to kill me. This was reported to my enem^ , who had fully recovered his strength, and exas- perated him still further. One morning he came with two of his friends, all with blackened faces, a token of war, and demanded of me pay for his injuries. I pgain refused, telling him that it was his own fault; liuithe came upon me stealthily, and would have killed me had I not discovered him just in time to save myself. While thus talking I heard the tramp of horses, caused by the arrival of the chief and others of the band, who, hearing of his intention to seek revenge, had hastened to try to effect a friendly arrangement. On entering I stated to the chief tlie demand made upon me, and my refusal, and that now he and his friends had come like men, and not like squaws, and that this time I was prepared for them. "I came," I said, "among you with goods for your accommodation ; trade was my object, and I have as iiiuch 116 t -U' '■ I t',. f It 3 right to do as I please with my goods as you have with the pony you ride. You would not allow any one to take him without your consent ; and, should any one attempt to take him by force, would you not defend yourself? Or would you, like a cowaixl, give him up > Say, would you ?" " No," he replied. " Neither did I, nor wiU I. I am very sorry for what I did— I mean, the result, causing the loss of his winter's hunt ; but I will not pay him for it. ' ' The chief said to them, ' ' The trader is right ; the goods were his ; he would not trust because our friend (pointing to the interi)retej) said you never paid. We all know that is trae." After a moment of silence the Indian extended his hand to me, which I took. "Now," I said, "we are friends, and I wish to give you some evidence of my friendship, not to pay you, but only as a token of my good will." We all had a smoke, and I presented him with articles he most needed, much to his surprise. And so that difficulty was ended, much to the satisfaction of my men, who were fearful that great trouble would result from it. About ten days after the above settlement I received orders from Mr. Deschamps to vacate my post and join the ' ' brigade' ' at Beason' s post. There we remained a Aveek or more, during whirl i time I formed an intimate acquaintance with the settlers at Peoria. About the first of April we resumed our journey toward Mackinaw, proceeding leisurely, and reaching Chicago in due season, where, as usual, I found a warm welcome from the Kinzie family and officers of the fort. A week or ten days was thus joyfully spent, and I deeply regretted the day of our departure. Coasting, as before, the east shore of Lake Michigan, 117 we arrived at Mackinaw early in June. On the sixth of that month I was present when Alexis St. Martin was shot, and am probably the only living person who wit- nessed the accident. The late Major John H. Kinzie had charge of the American Fur Company's retail store at Michilimackinac. I was in the habit of assisting him occasionally when a press of customers needed extra clerks. The store com- prised the ground floor near the foot of Fort Hill, on the corner of the street and the road leading up to the fort. The rear part of the store was underground, built of stone, which is still standing. This St. Martin was at the time one of the American Fur Company's engagees, who, with quite a number of others, was in the store. One of the party was holding a shot-gun (not a musket), which wa^ accidentally dis- charged, the whole charge entering St. Martin's body. The muzzle was not over three feet from him-I think not •over two. The wadding entered, as well as pieces of his clothing ; his shirt took fire ; he fell, as we supposed, dead. Br. Beaumont, the surgeon of the fort, was immedi- ately sent for, and reached the wounded man within a very short time-probably three minutes. We had just got him on a cot and were taking oft' some of his clothing. After Br. Beaumont had extracted part of the shot, pieces of clothing, and dressed his wound carefully- Robert Stewart and others assisting-he left him, remark- ing, -The man can't live thirty-six hours; I will come and see him bye and bye." In two or three hours he visited him again, expressing surprise at finding him domg better than he anticipated. 118 |!| , i I ! p The next day, T think, he resolved on a course of treat- ment, and brought down liis instruments, getting out more shot and (5lotliing, cutting off ragged ends of the wound, and made frequent visits, seeming very much interested, informing Mr. Stewart in my presence that he tliought lie could save liim. As soon as the man could be moved he was taken to the fort hospital, where Dr. Beaumont could give him better attention. About this time, if I am not greatly mistjiken, the doctor announced that he was treating his patient with a, view to experimenting on his stonuK^h, being satisfied of his recovery. You know the result. I knew Dr. Beaumont very well. The experiment of introducing food into the stomach through the orifice purposely kept ()i)en and healed with that object, was conceived by the doctor veiy soon after the first exaniination. My duties in the assorting and packing warehouse that summer gave me but little time for recreation. In fact, until after six o'clock in the evening, I had no time to myself, and 1 frequently worked until midnight. Sunday afternoon was the only time at which I felt fully at leisure to visit my friends, and that was passed either at Mrs. Fisher's, Mrs. Lii Fromboise's, Mrs. Mitch- ell's, Mr. Davenport's or Mr. Dousman's, at any of which places I was eve: a welcome xisitor. Thus was completed the fouith year of my life as an Indian trader. I'arly in the fall I left Mackinaw in the usual way for my liftli winter in the Indian country. By request of Mr. Crooks we invited a gentleman to accompany us, who desired to visit Southern Illinois. He was a ger 119 man of intelligence; in figure, tall and gjiiint, and pos- sessed of one of those inquisitive minds whicih ever denotes the genuine "Yankee." He was continually asking questions and wanting an explanation of every thing he saw or heard, and did not hesitate to pry into our private affairs and investigate our personal charac- teristics. He was exceedingly awkward in his positions in the hojit and camp, and could never accustom himself to sitting "tailor fashion." His Jimbs and body were in a continuous change of " sprawl," and at times inter- fering with the motions of the oarsman and forcing an involuntary '"sacre" from the voyageurs, who were pro- verbial for polit^eness and natural grace. To them he became ali/ernately an amusement and an annoyance, and as he could not understand their language, numer- ous jokes were4ndulged in at his expense, and he was nicknamed "La Beaute." At one time we were caught in a wind-stomi which compelled us to land and draw our boats up on the beach. On such occasions it was customary for the men to carry the Bourgeois ashore on their back. Our guest straddled the shoulders of one of the men, who pur- posely fell, taking care that his rider should full under him and become completely submerged, at the same time exclaiming, "M(m Dieu, monsieur, excusez moi," and qui(;kly helping him to his feet continued his apologies. Seeing our friend completely drenched, the water drip- ping from his clothing, and his hat floating off on the waves while the voyagear seemed so sincere in his apolo- gi(\s, was too much for our siler^t endurance, and we all brok(^ out into peals of laughter, in which our diipping passenger heartily joined. His company wjis sigreeable 120 to all ^ve the voyageurs and he was always invited to choose which boat he preferred to ride in for the day. We reached Oalf River without any particular incident, where we camped, and on the following morning I invited our friend to walk with me to the top of " Sleeping Bear," and join the boats when they reached its base. ' ' Sleeping Bear" wasahigh bluff, six or eight hundred feet above the lake. With the exception of a small clump of trees, its top was a naked plain of sand without vegetation of any kind. Its lake front was very steep, and it was with great diffi- culty and exertion that it could be ascended; the loose sand into which one sank several inches at each step, slid downward carrying one with it, so that progress was slow and tedious. To tvalk down was impossible unless one went backward, and in a stooping posture. It wa.s real sport to go down by quick succes^ve Jumps, and fortunate was the individual who could accomplish it without losing his balance, falling over and rolling to the bottom, where he arrived with mouth, nose, and ears filled with the fine shifting sand, though there was little or no danger of anything more serious. We reached the summit, and after ewing the lake and country, and our boats having arrived at the base, I said to my friend, '' We must descend by jumps; take as long leaps as you can, and don' t stop ; follow me"; and with a loud "whoop " to attract the attention of the boatmen, I went down by quick jumps, but before reach- ing the bottom heard the shouts of the voyageurs, and though I could not look back, I knew full well the cause. When I had arrived at the bottom, I looked back and saw my companion struggling and rolling, while the sand flew in every direction. He landed close to my feet 121 pale and frightened, but otherwise unharmed. The men screamed with laughter, much, as I thought, to the annoyance of our passenger, though he made no complaint, and having been brushed off, took his seat in the boat, and we proceeded on our way. This incident served for a standing joke, and many times was the laughter renewed when the ludicrous ' affair was again presented to our minds. Although we had enjoyed ourselves so much at his expense, we learned to like him for his many good qualities, and when we parted with him at Peoria, it was with many and sincere regrets. Our trip was a tedious one, we being kept many days in camp by heavy adverse winds. We were nearly a month in reaching Chicago, where, as usual, I was welcomed by my friends, the Kinzies, who, with Dr. Wolcott, rendered me many kind services. At Chicago I found Pierre Chouteau, Jr., of St. Louis, vi^hose acquaii mce I had formed several years before, and who now- ,>iOposed that I should enter their employ at the expiration of my engagement with the American Fur Company ; during my two weeks' stay we became very intimate. The officers of the fort were good com- panions, and I passed much of my time with them, and very pleasantly, and much regretted the time of parting. We encountered the usual trials and hardships between Chicago and Starved Rock, and in due season arrived at Bureau Post, where I had passed my first winter, and Mr. Beebeau having died since our departure the previous spring, I was placed in charge. An opposition trader named Antoine Bourbonais, who was supplied with goods from St. Louis, had located : ■ If ; ' I 3! 122 there. He was a large, portly man, and for one of his years, was very energet,i(;, and was an old, experienced trade Mr. DcHciuunpH told ine of his virrues and fail- ings, wariKHi nie of his tricks, and cautioned mo as to my intercourse with him. My old Indian friends, Wa-ba and Shauh-e-nee, wore also here to wtOcomo me. It was late in the season when wo arrived, and Bour- honais had already heen locatt>d for more than a month, and in him I fimnd a strong competitor. He was })os- sessiHl of a " foxy" sharpn(!ss, was fond of his cups, and when under tluur influence, inclined to he quarrelsome. I was as friendly toward him as could he expected, and while W(^ treated eai^h oIIkm- with iT>spe(;t. wo watched each other closely, each striving to supply the best iumters with their winter outiits, and in this we exer- cised all the secresy and stratt^gy in our i)ovver; hut after the Indians had receivi^d their suppli(>s and departed to tlu>ir hunting grounds, our int(M'coursi\ was very friendly. The time soon ari-ived when wo were to visit the cami)s of the Indians in tlu> interior and endeavor to securer their furs, collect the amounts with which they had been ci-edited, and sell to them the goods which we carried with us. Bourbonais had five or six horses, while I had none, which of course gavt^ him a gi-eat advantage, as he could pack his goods onto the horses, and retui'n with his furs in the sauK^ maimer, while I depended on the backs of my men. With a light load, my men could travel as last as the horses, that depended for their subsistence on foraging on the half-de;ul grass of the bottom lands. To know when and where an expedition was to go was very necessai-y. and en-ery strategy was resorted to, IL 123 and considonul porfectly fair, to coiummiI tlione fu(;ts from each other. Ah a coiiHoquence, wo watched (?ach othc^r coriHtantly, sonietiineH quarreled, thougli imvv.' coming to hlowH, (iiiickly becoming frieinlly again, and fr"qiiontly telUnj; how one liad outwitted the other in the course of trade. We both had a laborious and exciitinj; winter, thougli neither cut the |)rice8 on leading articles. Atonetini(\ I learned from an Indian that Bourbonais was i)acking uj) soino bales of goods, and we had noticed that he had gathei-ed his horses in from their feeding grounds ostensibly to salt them, all of which led me to suspect that an exi)edition was bcnng fitt(Ml out, and I detailed a man to wat(;h. Just before dayligjit, my man report(Ml that two horses were loaded with goods and anothei- saddled, which convin(;(3d me that Bourbonais was himself going, as he usually rode, being too (ilumsy to walk. To ascertain vvhei'e they were going, I hired an Indian, who liai)pen(Ml to be at my house, to follow at a distan(;e, pretending to hunt, until they should leave the timber and take tlunr course over the praiiie. In the meanwhile, I pi"(!pared threes bales of goods, of twenty-five pounds each, and detailed three of my men to carry tiiem, giving Noel Vasseur charge of the expe- dition, with instructions to take the track and overtake Bourbonais that day, and, if possible, p;iss him without being secMi ; but if unable to do that, to camp with him for the night. The Indian returning, reported the <;ourse the expedition had taken, and we then knew that they were bound for one of two hunting bands, but which one we could not tell. Vasseur started with his men and soon came in sight of Bourbonais and his party, but being on the open : i ; i) 194 prairio could not pass thom without being noticed, and 80 decided to overtake them by dark, and camp with or near them. Bourbonais, finding his secret discovered, extended his usual hospitality to Vasseur and party, and after they had finished their suppers, offered them a dram, which was gladly accepted. Vasseur and he chatted and drank, until by daylight the old man was dead drunk. Vasseur had gained a knowledge of their destination, and with his companions started for the Indian camps' knowing full well that Bourbonais could not get sobered up and catch his horses on the range in time to overtake them. By hard marching Vasseur found the camp, col- lected some of the debts, and bought all the surplus furs and peltries by the time Bourbonais reached the camp. The old man was much moi-tified and angered when he discovered how he had been outwitted, but soon got over it, and together he and Vasseur, visited the other band, collected their credits, and returned home. In this man- ner the winter was passed. On Mr. Deschamps' return he bought Bourbonais' furs, engaged hin> in the service of the American Fur Company, and he was afterwards stationed at Kankakee, where he died. Mr. Deschamps was well satisfied with the result of my winter's trade, it being much better than he had anticipated. The season had been an unusually good one, and we had accunuilated more furs and peltries than oui boats could carry up the Desplaines River, and I was accordingly dispatched with four boat loads to Chicago ; these I stored with Mr. John Crafts, and returned to the "brigade," when we all moved forward on our annual return to Mackinaw. A portion of our furs were shipped from Chicago, for the first time, in a small schooner wliich had brought supplies for the garrison. ! PA-PA-MA-TA-BE— FROM ST. JOSEPH TO THE KANKAKEE— — "HUBBAHD's TRAH."— UNDER THE ICE— PEORIA AND ST. LOUIH. In tlie month of March (iS28), I had occasion to go alone to see some Indians wlio were camped at "Big Woods" on Fox Rivei-, in Du Page County, west of Chicago. After I had transacted my business with them, and the evening before my return home, an Indian who belonged to another band, whicli was camped about ten miles distant, came into the wigwam where I was, and said he was going to my trading house. I gave him some supper, and told him I should start in the morning and that he could accompany me, to which he assented. We started in the morning as early as we could see to travel, and found the ground soft and nuiddy, and the walking hard and tedious, but I noticed that my companion walked very fast. About noon he stopped to smoke, but having made up my mind that he wanted to race, I kept on as fast as possible and got a long distance ahead of him. When I reached the Illinois River above Hennepin, and opposite my trading house, I discovered that the (125) ".jJf 120 1 i H< ■ 1 canoe which I had loft tlioie had heen stolon. Tho bot- tom lands woro ovorflowed fi-oni tho river to the bluffs. I finally got upon a log, and by pulling on the bushes and pushing with a stick, managed to propel it to the bank of the river. I shouted to my men, and waited a long time for them to answer, but receiving no response, I jumped in and swam across, reaching my house about dark. The following morning I sent my men back across the river to look for the Indian; they found him with a party of others on horseback, very nmch chagrined and disappointed at his defeat. I then learned that the band which I had visited had made a wager with the band to which my companion of the day before belonged that I could outwalk any one they could produce, and they had planned the race without intending that I should know of it. The distance walked that day is seventy-five miles, in a direct line, according to the present survey. I suffered no inconvenience from it, though the Indian was very lame for a day or so. Some have doubted tiiat I could have walked so great a distance, but I was then young and in my prime, and had long had the reputation among the Indians of being a very rapid traveler, and had, in consequence, been named by them Pa-pa-ma-ta-be, " The Swift Walker." It was a well-known fact, at that time, that Pierre Le Claire, who carried the news of the war of 1812, was sent by Major Robert Forsythe to his uncle, Mr. John Kinzie, at Chicago, and that he walked from the mouth of St. Joseph River around Lake Michigan to Chicago, a dis- tance of ninety miles, in one continuous walk. 197 Ho arrived at Mr. Kinzie's, ate his supper, and crossed over the river to report to the officers of Fort Dearborn, before nine o'clock at night, having started before day- light from St. Joseph river. We made our usual stay in Chicago, I among my good friends, and without incident worthy of note, arrived in due season at Mackinaw. I was placed in entire charge of the receiving of furs, assorting- and packing them for shipment. It was a full two months' work, of hard, fatiguing duty. All the furred skins, except nmskrats and wolves, had each to pass my inspection, and wlien examined, all the finer, fancy furs, were to be assorted as to shades of cobr, as well as to fineness of fur. I was furnished with assistants who, after I had assorted the furs, counted and delivered them to the packers to press, tie, mark, and store, ready for shipment, one hundred voijageurs being detailed for this duty. The roll was called regularly at six o'clock in the moining, and with the exception of one liour's intermission at noon, our labors were incessant until six at night. After the day's labor was ended, I was required to make up an account showing the total of that day's work. The statement for each outfit was kept separate on my packing-house book, from which it was drawn off by myself or one of my assistants, and filed with the book-keeper in the general t)fiice. Complaints were fi-equently made that I assorted too closely, and not unfrequently Mr. Stewart would himself re-assort, with the manager of the " brigade," who was interest(^d in making his returns appear as large as pos- sible, but usually my assorting was apjjroved. I made 128 it an invariable rule never to open and re-assort a pack. The different outfits were required to furnish me a list of their packs, their contents, and number of skins unas- sorted. One of my assistants opened each pack and counted the skins, and if found to be short it was his duty to notify the chief of the "outfit " or his represent- ative, who was usually present, in order that his count mi^ht be corrected, and my returns when made agree with his, and errors and dissatisfaction be thus prevented. I was glad to reach the close of this summer's duties. It was very fatiguing work to stoop over and assort from morning until night. I had no time for rest or re- creation until the last skin was in pack ready for shipment. The packs were very neatly put up in frames, nearly square in form, and intended to weigh about one hun- dred pounds each. It required much practice before the men selected for that purpose became experts. The skins must be placed in proper positions, evenly distrib- uted, so as to make the pack press equally, the ends built up straight, so as to show no depressions or elonga- tions, and a failure in either of these particulars necessi- tated repacking. The different kir is of skins were packed in different ways, each kind having its own peculiar manner of fold- ing, while all packs were required to be of the same size ; and wlinn taken from the press, they resembled huge reams of paper, so even and uniform were the ends and sides. We used screw presses, worked b}- hand, and if a pack came from the press without filling all the requirements, it was repacked and repressed. Ficb nnrV — f"- — 1211 wn.s then „un,l„.,o.l, a„,l an invoice of its contents^ n,a,lo wliK'h received the same lunnber. A,l.joining the warehouse was a la.^e yar,i, into „-hich the pacta were receive,) when bronght fron, the Indian .^oun ,y and in whicl, they were oi«„ed. Each skin was thoroughly beaten to rid it of bugs anddnst, and if (lamp ,t was ,lried, and then carried into the warehonse tor assorting, connting, and packing. AI,out the n.i.ldle "f August n,y work was con.pleted, an,l I was at Uberty "use ,ny tin>e as I chose. I en.ploye,! it in visiting my ti-iends, and thus in.jft.oved it to the last moment. Again we were ready to depart on our monotonous lake voVage, coasting as usual the east shore of Lake Mich igan and meeting with no incident worthy of mention untd we reached St. Joseph, where we were detained or severa days by head winds. My destination had heen decided by Mr. Doschamps to be the Iroquois country We knew that it was but a short distance from a bend of the St. Jo.seph River to the Kankakee K.ver, and I determined to endeavor to pass my boats and goods overlan.l to the Kankakee, and thus save the renunnder of the .journey to Chicago, as well as the delays and bardslnps of tl,e old route through JIud Ijake and the Desplaines. From Mr. Burnett, who lived a little more than a nnle from where we were then camped, 1 learned that the Indians neai- Bartrand trading house had ponies on which my goods could he packed, and he thought the Indians would also undertake to pass my boats across^ suggesting that by hitching the tails of the ponies to the boafs they could be made to help considerably Having concluded a favorable arrangemen"t with the ■7 .;iU~^* I' I r I U wfati! :: ! Indians, I undeitook the venture, telling Mr. Deschamps that if I failed, I would return and overtake him at Chicago. I selected my men, among them being Noel Vasseur, in whom I had the utmost confidence, wrote a letter to my good friends, the Kiiizies, telling them of the change in my i)lans, and that I would visit them after I got settled in my winter quarters. I sent also to Mr. Kinzie my best clothes for safe keeping. Everything being in readiness, I started early on the following morning, and soon passed an old Jesuit mission, afterwards occupied by Mr. Coy. We halted a short time at Bai'trand's, and from him I received full information about the Kankakee Rivei-, and he tendered me every assistance in his power in making the crossing. Pro- ceeding to the place of leaving the St. Joseph I met the Indians with their ponies, and following the suggestion of Mr. Burnett, cut poles and lashed them a(;ross the boats, which had been unloaded, at the bow and stern. We then wove and tied the ponies' tails securely to the poles at the stern, and tied their heads to the ones at the bow. In order that the boats might move moie easily, we placed rollers under them, and then the Indians and squaws commenced urging the [)onies forward. For some time they wei • awkward and stubborn, some would pull, while others would not, but by patience and perseverance, the men also pulling, we finally got them started and advanced for a hundred or more yards, when the ponies came to a dead stand. We again applied the rollers and the muscles of the men, and succeeded in making anothei' start, and the ponies becoming accus- tomed to the work, soon got so they would make a quartei' .Tsuiasia of a mile at a stretch, and in this manner we passed our hoats over and launched them into the Kankakee Repackmg our goods and loading them into the hoats, we were soon ready to emhark. We found the Kankakee narrow and crooked, with sufficient water to float our boats, hut with very little current. Our progress under oars was at the rate of fifty or sixty miles a day, and we met with no obstacles until we reached the upper rapids or shoals, where the village of Momence is now located. From that point, shallow water continued at intervals until we reached the mouth of the Iroquois River, which river we ascended to a trading house, located a short distance below the present village of Watseka, which was our destination. The Messrs. Ewing, then of Ft. Wayne, had a trading bouse further up the river, and opposite the present vil- lage of Iroquois. This house was in charge of one Cha bare and it was for the pmpose of opposing him that I had been detailed. Our -house was soon put in a habita- ble condition, and my first leaving it was for the purpose ot visiting Mr. Chabare, with whom, during the entire winter, I continued on friendly relations. Having made friends with the Indians, to whom I gave liberal credits, and having noted where thev severally intended making their hunting camps, I slipped away for a week's visit to Chicago, principally to see my good friends the Kinzies, having as usual a very agreeable visit, and promising to return at Christmas time, which, however, I was prevented from doing. In the spring I had but a handful of goods left, and the result of my winter's business was quite satisfactory i:w f Si In l»«>(li Mr. Dcschiimps and ilic m;mji};«Ms of lli<'(^»in- l>;iny al Mackinaw. llcCorc Mr. Dcschanips' arrival I ahandon.'d my post and \v(>nl lo (Miicapt, Mhmc Io await him and llichri- ^adt". It was al)()n( a month hcforc they oanir, a) wjiich delay I was well pleased, as 1 pa.ss(»d my tinu? with the family of Mr. Kin/ic. who, with Dr. VVolcott and Iho oniciMs of the fort, made my visit very |)leasaid, I. nmch re^relted hvivini;'. and rehuttanlly |>arted fiom my friends, nnceitain whethei- I sh<»nld ever see them ai;ain, as my term of siM'viee was ahont expiring;-. I had not s(>ltled in my nnnd what was my dnty and interest. My inclination l(>d me to my nioiJiei', who was strns;.i;lin.i;- to snpport her loin- yonn^- dan^hters. My yonnj;- hrotluM- Christopher had ohtained a position in l:he hardware store of HcMiry Kin^-, in iNev,' York, hnt was rec(Mvini;' only his hoaid for his s(>rviees. In my nncertainty what conrs(> to pnrsne I resorted, as was my cnstom, lo Mv. Kin/ie for advice, and also consulted tlu^ Indian a,i;ent. Dv. VVolcott, who was from Middletown. Conn., and kne.w my mother well. It was now live yeai's since I parted from my lovinj;- Christian . mother and my sisters and hroth(>r, and I was just r«\ichini;- my majority, with no knowled};e of the world outsider of the wild(>rness, and with no husiness experi- ence, (>xcepting in the fur trade. For the [)ast live years 1 had had no opportunity to impiove my mind hy inter- course with i-etined society excepting dnrin<;- the short time I had pas.s(Hl in Chicago and Mackinaw, and while at the latter place, more than one-half of my time was devoted to hai-d lahor. In my hoyhood days 1 had no love for hooks or study and n»)w that 1 felt the need of i:{;{ improving- my „,i,|,|^ | ,.,„,|,| |j,„| ''»'■ ''"' l«'«t .y«'ar I Ii;i(l felt Hi). h waHto (.(• my |i(o and Um- niorc I hail cvor the caused mo. "lortificafion my i^(ian-an/4-eiiieiit with M'ln, witii to fore^^o tlio pleasiin. <»f seeing.- They advised me to remit my the liKhaii trade imdt tlir Anujrican Fur Company; <„•, if not vvitl7t! Mr. Choi «'aii of SI. I,(Miis, u'h was ready to giv (' me tiiat had rost me five years to 1 privations and exposures, I vocation, to lit me for uhid to abandon a husiness <'arn, under so maiiv tini«>, seemed to th they said r some other uiicerlain I would consume valuahh' cni very inadvisahle. *' |)( icy said, "of the KiirCompanva f niand your ahilities, aud if tl u'r roiisideration for haw Mr. Clioteau to fall hack H'y refus(! to uivc. i(, f,| icn you upon; and if hoth fail. you are wc-ll (Miough known to ^('1- town would have cost all my aircumulated funds. I was forced after du(5 consideration to forego the pU\'isuie of sd Itiiii to Hx my allovvaiic.'. tli.it, I imVlit settle* account at Ww store. I 1io|)«m1 tijnt I should linve iK^i left to tjik<' mo o.ist, and added that porli.ipH Astor would j^ivc nu- employment in the fur store in New York. Mr. Stewart seemed much surprised, :uid said that he thought it was settled that 1 should remain in the employ of the Company. I replied " No, sir; Icronsider my services worth more t,him you and Mr. Crooks offer me; iKMicel intend to leave you." Before the depai-tuie of the 8c]iO(mei-, however, th(\y ac(;«'pted my offer, and I engaged witli t\w Company for aiiother year. 1 sliipped a portion of my goods to (Chicago hy a v(>ssel hound there, and thus reduced the numl)er of i)oats in the bi'igade to five. 'h 1^24.— I'l.ACKI) IN ClIAm;!'; of TIIK ILLINOIS KMVKII 'rji.4J)IXU POSTS, Mr. Dcschanips. liavin«»: beconu' old and woiii by loiij coiitimied s.nvice and the liaidships to which ho had been exposed, resigned his position as Superintendent of the Ilhnois River Tiading Posts of the American Fur Company, and on his recommendation I was appointed to succeed him. \ nowdetei-mined to cany out a project which I had long urged upon Mr. Deschamps, but without success— that of uidoading the boats upon their arrival at Chicago from Mackinaw, and scuttling them in the slough, to prevent theii- loss by prairie tires, until they were needed to reload with furs for the return voyage. The goods and furs 1 proi)osed to tiansport to and from the Indian hunting grounds on pack horses. In this manner the long, tedious, and difficult passage through Mud Lake, into and do\vn the l)esi)laines River, would be avoided, and the goods taken directly to the Indians at their hunting grounds, instead of having to be carried in packs on the backs of the men. During the year 18l>2. I i:j7 ]ia(] ('stal)lisli('(l .1 dipoft patli or track fioiii InKpiois post to Danville, and I now cxtcMulcd it south from Danvilhi and noith to Clii('a|;o, thus lidly opening- "Hnbhaid's Trair' from Chicaiijo to a point about <»ne hundred and fifty miles south of Danville. Alonj-' this ''trail" I estahlislied trading- posts forty to fifty miles Hpai't. This 'Mrail" Ijecame th(! regularly traveled route l)et\yeen ChieaKoJind l)anvill<' and i)oints ht^yond, and was desi^niated on tlu^ old maps as " lluhhard's Trail." * In the winter of 183;3-;34 the GiMieral Ass«>ml)ly ordeivd that a State road he located from Vincennes to Chicaiio. and that mile-stones he placed thereon, and from Danville tc» Chicago the Connnissioners adopted my *' trail " most of the way, because it was the most direct route and on the most favorable ground. Through constant use by horses, ponies, and men, the path became worn HO deeply into the ground that when 1 last visited the vicinity of my old Innpiois post (now called Bunkum), in the fall of 18S0, traces of it were still visible, and my ■grand nephew, a little lad of fourtetMi years, who accom- l)anied me on the trip, jumped out of the carriage and ran S()m(> distance in the trail where 1 had'walked fifty-eight years before *NoTK.— " Hubbard's Trail '" ran throu^rh Cook, Will. Kankakfu, Inxiiiois, and Vermilion Counties, passinj? the present towns of Blue Island, llonio- wood. Bloom, Crete, Grant, Momence, Beavcrvillo, Iroiiuois, Hoopeston, and JMyersville to Danville, and southwest through Vermilion and Champaign Counties to Bement in Piatt County ; thence south through Moultrie and Shelby Counties to FJlue Point in Effingham County. At Crete, a fence hits been built around a portion of this " trail," to further preserve it as an "old landmark and u relic of early roads and early times.— M. E. 11, ir f M. '■II IMS I SlT). Tho wint.T ..f lS2r> T passed at my liocpiois post. The Inmtiii^ had \mm mniNiially good, and lai^o (piaiititios of goods woio sold and many fiiio furs (;olh.(;tcd. Ill tlio spring, Mr. Join. Kin/io got out of goods at Chicago, and sont a Mr. Hall to me to rccpuvst nw to go to St. Lonis by hoat for a supply. Mr. Hall was to ivmaiii and n^anagc n.y hunnoss through the ice, and gave utterance to their surprise by a peculiar exclamation. I recovered my horse and saddle and returned to my trading house, with no worse result than wet clothing and a slightly bruised head. I had just completed a small blackwalnut canoe, and with this, and my man Jouibeau to assist me, I went to the dividing ridge, near where the city of Kankakee now stands. The canoe was small and would barely hold us. I li I : !> It rocjuois. ;iiijM(Ml,'(|.sMf«'ly down the I louiMK hi-jisoii and withoiif incident worthy of notice. I Ixdi^ht my guo^o, and ictiinicd as (|nickly uh possihic Io my poHt at Ii(»(|uois. Wc \v«'rc in a state of somi-staivation this spiin^', ht'ing comi)cllod to liv(» ahnost entirely on corn. My . meii wei-e hnsy sphttin^ lails to W'nci.) in a patch of gronnd I'oia garden, in which T hoped to raise vegeta hies for the followinf;- winter's consnmption. Mt'at was innch desired, hnt hard to procnre. 1 had a large douiestitM-at that enjoyed the freedom t)f the honse and store, an«l ni)on packing my winlei's col- lection of fnrs for transportation to (Jhi(;ago, I discov- ei'ed that tlie cat had gnawed the ends of some of them, where meat had heen left in skinning. I was vei-y nnich V(»xe(l at the discovery. Looking np I saw the cat sitting in the store window, and taking my rifie, shot hinr He fell inside, ;ind crawled hehind a hale of cloth, where he remained nntil [ removed th(» goods, when 1 fonnd and killed him. I took him out and gave him to the Indian cook, telling him that the skin would make him a nice tohacco pouch. Just hefoie dinner time I went out again and asked the cook what he had done with the cat. He answ^ered me by pointing to tho kettle in which the corn soup was cooking for the men's dinner. I laughed, but said nothing. When the men came in and smelled the savory stew they were greatly pleased at the thought of having meat foi- (limier. They were always in the habit of selecting the choicest bits of meat and sending them to me, and they did not forget me on this occasion ; but I declined to eat, telling them I did not care for it, and that they 142 i i could eat all of it. f hey ate it with great relish, and after they had finished their dinner, I asked them if they ki^ew what they had eaten. They said '' yes, wild- cat," and were greatly astonished when I told them they had devoured our old tom cat. One of them said it made no difference, it was good ; the other thought differ- ently, and tried hard to rid himself of what he had eaten by thrusting his finger down his throat, but with- out success ; the old cat would not come up. TROUBLE WITH YELLOW HEAD— DANVILLE- <( WINNEBAGO SC!ARE -IN THE OHIO RIVEH— KA-NE-KUCK. I had now been in the tinploy of the American Fur Company for more than seven years, and for the two years after the expiration of my original five years' con- ti-act, I had received the very hberal salary of thirteen hundred dollars per year. Being, however, dissatisfied with that amount, I had determined to leave its em- ploy, when the Company offered me an interest as a special partner, which offer I gladly accepted. My la- bors were no lighter; in fact, the responsibility seemed greater, and I worked harder than ever, realizing that on my own efforts and success depended the amount of compensation I should receive. My head(iuarters for the winter were at Iroquois post, though I made frequent excursions to other points, and was ver}^ often in Chicago. One cold day in March, 1S27, I went to Beaver Creek Lake for a hunt. This was a part of the great Kankakee marsh, and geese, ducks, and swan were very abundant. The fall previous I had hidden a canoe in the vicinity of the lake ami about thirteen miles from niv tradinsr house, (143) li I 144 and this I t„uii(] Nvitli little difficulty. I hunted until nearly dark, when, thinking it too laf^3 to return home, I camped for the night on a small island in the lake. Tiiere were no trees, but I made a tire with di'iftwood, nnd having ( ooked some game for my supper, lay down and soon fell asleep. Some time in the night I awoke in gi-eat pain, and found that my fire had nearly gone out. I managed to replenish it, hut the pain continued, being most sevevo in my legs, and by morning it increased to such :m extent that I could not reach my canoe. About ten o'clock an Indian came down the lake and I (-•ailed him and told him of my condition, and with his assistance reached the canoe, and finally the main shore. I sent the Indian to Iroquois with orders for my men to come and bring with them a horse and har- ness. On their arrival I had the horse hitched to the canoe and myself placed therein, and started in this man- ner to ride home. I soon found that I could not stand tlie jarring of the canoe as it was drawn over the rough gi-ound, and halted until some better means of travel could be devised. I sent back to Iroquois for two more men, which necessitated my camping for another niglit. (Jn their arrival they constructed, with poles and blankets, a litter upon which they bore me safely and quite comfortably home. I had a severe attack of inflammatory rheumatism, Avhich confined me to the house for three or four weeks' and from which I did not fully recover for eighteen months. I doctored myself with poultices of elm and decoctions of various herbs. About six weeks after my attack of rheumatism I prepared to abandon my trading house on the Iroquois 145 and remove to Chicago, but was compelled to wait for a band of Indians \vho owed me for goods and who had not yet returned from their winter hunting grounds. While thus delayed two white men appeared with a pair of horses and a wagoii loaded with corn, cornmeal, and whisky. Hearing that I was waiting for the Indians, they decided to wait also and trade them whisky for furs,' blankets, or anything else of value which the Indians might possess. I was unable to walk without crutches, and scarcely able to leave my bunk. I knew that if the Indians were allowed to have the whisky, trouble would ensue, so I sent Noel Vasseur to their camp to ask one of the men to come and see me. He soon came, and I told him I did not like to have him sell whisky to the Indians, and that he had no right to do so, as he had no license from the Government to trade with Indians. He replied that he had as much right to trade as I had, and that he should do as he pleased. I warned him that the Indians would become drunk, and would then rob, and probably murder them, but he refused to listen to me, and returned to his camp. I immediately stationed men to watch for the coming of the Indians, and was soon informed that Yellow Head and his band were at hand. When they arrived, I had a large kettle of corn soup and other food j-eady for them, and as soon as they had eaten, I took them into my council room, traded for their furs, collected what they owed me, and after giving each one a gill of whisky, dismissed them before the strangers had learned of their arrival. The Indians soon discovered the camp of the two men and commenced trading their blankets and the goods they had just bought from me for whiskv. I sent lo r I; hi! ii; ! IK' ! ' Ir: s >, lii'i i,u 146 word to the men to leave, and told them that as soon as the Indians got drunk they would rob them of all they had sold them, but they would not heed the message. As I had anticipated, the Indians soon became drunk, and angry because they had nothing more to trade and could get no moi-e to drink, and began to take back their blankets and goods. The white men became very much frightened, and came to me for assistance. I refused to interfere, but sent Vasseur and Jacques Jom- beau to empty the remaining kegs of whisky, which they did. The Indians scooped up the whisky with their hands, and became more and more enraged, and finally assaulted Jombeau, and stabbed him in the back, tliough not severely. The Indians got back all they had sold, and the white men made their escape with the horses and wagou. The disturbance lasted all night. The Indians came to my house and demanded more whisky, and were, of course, refused. They all laid down and fell asleep, except Yellow Head (a brother-in- law of Billy Caldwell), who came several times to me, coaxing and threatening me, but to no purpose. He finally said he would go to my store, break in and take as much as he wanted. I said, "Very well, go on," and he started for the storehouse. I got up from my bunk, took my rifle and thrust it through the paper which served for window ghiss, and as he reached the store, I " drew a bead on him," and called to him to go on and break in. He changed his mind and walked away. I again laid down, and in a few minutes he returned very angry, and walking up to my bunk drew a knife and attempted to stab ma ; but I was too quick for him, seized his arm, and lame as T was, jumped up, took the 147 knife away, and pushed him out of the door, where I found some squaws who had been attracted by the dLst,urbance. Outside the door was a ]arge mortar with a heavy non-wood pestle, which I used for pounding corn. I gave the knife to a squaw, and leaned on one ci-u en against the mortar with my hand on the pestle. Yellow Head felt in his leggins for another knife when I said to the squaw, "Give the old woman a knife" She did so, but Yellow Head, looking at the pestle upon which my hand rested, and doubtless remembering the sudden manner in which I had before disarmed him deemed "discretion the better part of valor," and silentl^ departed with the squaws. Tlie day following I started for Chicago, leaving one ot my men, Dominick Bray by name, in charge of the place, and to make a garden and plant vegetables for the following winter's use. Two or three days after my aiTival in Chicago, Bray appeared with the story that Ye low Head had returned for revenge. Bray was lying in his bunk, when Yellow Head and two other Indians entered the house and leveled their rifles at him He .lumped up and ran by them out of the door, pulling it « nit just as they fired, and the bullets struck the door tlirough which he had escaped. Bray ran into the woods, caught a horse, and left for Chicago The Indians pillaged the houso and store, taking everything that had been left. Other Indians warned me that Yel low Head intended to kill me should he ever meet me ngain, but before my return to the Iroquois, he was killed m a drunken fight, and thus I was saved from further trouble with him. I had already located at Danville, where I intended in M.' 148 the future to make my general headquarters, and a portion of the spring and summer of this year was spent at that place. Danville had become quite a settlement, and I liad a number of pleasant acquaintances there. Mr. Kinzie having resigned his position as Indian trader at Chicago, I made application for the place, which, however, I did not receive. I made my annual trip to Mackinaw, arriving there in the month of August, and before my return made a new arrangement with the Fur Company, by which I bought out its entire interests in Illinois. Business was very poor during the year 1827, and in the spring of 1828 I built a store at Danville, and permanently established my head- quarters there. WINNEBAGO SCARE. ^' At the breaking out of the Winnebago war, early in July, 1827, Fort Dearborn was \ ithout military occupa- tion. Doctor Alexander Wolcott, Indian agent, had charge of the fort, living in the brick building, just within the north stockade, previously occupied by the commanding officers. The old officers' quarters, built of logs, on the west, and within the pickets, were occupied by Russell E. Heacock and one other American family, while a number of voyageurs M^ith their families were living in the soldiers' quarters on the east side of the inclosure. The aiuiual payment of the Pottawatomie Indians occurred in September of the year 1828. A large body of them had assembled, according to custom, to receive their annuity. These left after the payment for their respective villages, except a portion of Big Foot's band. * From statements by >[r. Hubbard in Chicago Historical Series, No. 10. 5.0 The night following the payment, there was a dance in the soldiers' barracks, during the progress of which a violent storm of wind and rain arose ; and about mid- night these (juarters v/ere struck by lightning and totally consumed, together with the storehouse and a portion of the guard-house. The sleeping inmates of Mr. Kinzie'& house, on the opposite bank of the river, were aroused by the cry of "fire,'' from Mrs. Helm, one of their number, who, from her window, had seen the flames. On hearing the alarm I, with Robert Kinzie, hastily arose, and, only partially dressed, ran to the river. To our dismay, we found the canoe, which was used for crossing the river, tilled with water ; it bad been partially drawn up on rhe beach and became filled by the dashing uf the waves. Not being able to turn it over, and having nothing with which to bail it out, we lost no time, but swam the stream. Entering by the north gate we saw at a glance the situation. The barracks and storehouse being wrapped in flames, we directed our energies to the saving of the guard-house, the east end of which was on fire. Mr. Kinzie, rolling himself in a wet blanket, got upon the roof. The men and women, about forty in number, formed a line to the river, and with buckets, tubs, and every available utensil, passed the water to him ; this was kei)t up till daylight before the flames were subdued, Mr. Kinzie maintaining his dangerous position with great fortitude, though his hands, face, and portions of his body were severely burned. His father, mother, and sister, Mrs. Helm, had meanwhile freed the canoe from water, and crossing in it, fell into line with those carrying water. ig Foot band of Indians were present at Some of the Bir I' '1 111 1 'it the fire, but merely as si)ectators, and could uot be pre- vailed ui)on to assist ; they all left the next day for their homes. The strangeness of their behavior was the sub- ject of discussion among us. Six or eight days after this event, while at breakfast in Mr. Kinzie's house, we heard singing, faintly at first, but gradually growing louder as the singers approached. Mr. Kinzie recognized the leading voice as that of Bob Forsyth, and left the table for the piazza of the house, where we all followed. About where Wells street now crosses the river, in plain sight from where we stood, was a light birch bark canoe, manned with thirteen men, rapidly approaching, the men keeping time with their paddles to one of the Canadian boat songs ; it proved to be Governor Cass and his secretary, Robert Forsyth, and they landed and soon joined us From them we first learntx] of the breaking out of the Winnebago war, and the massacre on the Upper Mississippi. Governor Cass was at Green Bay by appointmeut, to hold a treaty with the Wiimebagoes and Menomonee tribes, who, however, did not appear to meet him in council. News of hostili- ties reaching the Governor there, heimtnedicltely procured a light birch bark canoe, purposely made for speed, manned it with twelve men at the paddles and a steers, man, and started up the river, making a portage into the Wisconsin, then down it and the Mississippi to Jeffer- son Barracks below St. Louis. Here he persuaded tlie commanding officer to charter a steamer, and embarking troops on it, ascended the Mis- sissippi hi search of the hostile Indians, and to give aid to the troops at Fort Snelling. On reaching the mouth of the Illinois River, the Governor ( with his men and I 151 canoo, having been bronght so far on the steamer ), here left it, and ascending tliat stream and the Desi)laines, passed through Mud Lak«? hito the Sontli Jirandi of the Chicago River, thus reaching Chicago. This trip from Green Bay, was performed in about thirteen days, the Governor's party sleeping only five to seven hours, and averaging sixty to seventy miles travel eacli day. On the Wisconsin River ti.ey passed Winnebago encamp- ments without molestation. Tliey did not stoi) to parley, passing rapidly by, singing th.Mi- boat songs ;' the Indians were so taken by sui'i)rise tbat before they recovered from theii" astonishment, the canoe was out of danger. Governor Cass remained at Chicago but a few hours, coasting Lake Mi(5bigan back to Green Buy. As soon as he left, the inhabitants of Chicago assembled for consul- tation. Big Foot was susi)ected of acting in concert with the Winnebagoes, as he was known to be friendly to them, and many of his band had intermarried with that tribe. Shaub-e-nee was not here at the payment, his money having been drawn for him by his friend, Billy Caldwell. The evening before Governor Cass' visit, liowever, he was in Chicago, and then the guest of Caldwell. At my sug- gestion he and' Caldwell were engaged to visit Big Foot's village (Geneva Lake), and get what information they could of the plans of the Winnebagoes, and also learn wliat action Big Foot's band intend(^d taking. They left immediately, and on nearing Geneva Like, arranged tliat Shaub-e-nee should enter the village alone, Caldwell remaining liidden. Upon entering the village Shaub-e-nee was made a pris- oner, and accused of being a friend of the Americans, HI 152 and H spy. He affected great indignation at these charges, and said to Big Foot : - I was not at tJie i)aynient, hut was told hy my hraves that you desired us to ^ n the Winnebagoes and make war on the Ameiicans. I think the Winnebagoes have been foolish ; alone they cannot succeed. So I have come to council with you, hear what you have to say, when I will return to my people and report all you tell me ; if thoy shiiU then say we will join you, I will consent." After talking nearly all night they agreed to let him go, provided he was nccompanied by one of their own number ; to this proposal Shaub-e-nee readily consented, though it placed him in a dangerous position. His friend Caldwell was waiting for him in the outskirts of the village and his presence must not be ::nown, as it would endanger both of their lives. Shaub- e-nee was equal to the emergency. After leaving in company win. one of Big Foot's braves, as the place of Caldwell's concealment was neared, he commenced com- plaining in a loud voice of being suspected and made a prisoner, and when quite near, said, " We must have no one with us in going to Chicago. Should we meet any one of your band or an?j one else, we must tell them to go awav ; we must go by ourselves, and get to Chicago by noon to-morrow. Kinzie will give us something to eat and wo can go on next day." Caldwell heard and understood the meaning of this, and started alone by another route. Sti-ategy was still to be used, as Shaub-e-nee desired to report ; so, on near- ingChicagc he said to his companion, "If Kinzie sres you, he will ask why your band did not assist in putting out the fire. Maybe he has heard news of the war and is angry with Big Foot ; let us camp here, for our horses 158 are very tired. This they die, and after a hxtle thlunteurs to meet at Danville the next even- ing, with five dnys' .ations. By the day following at the hour ai)i)ointe(l, on.- Imndied men were organized into a company, and appointing a Mi-. Morgan, an old frontier tighte.-, as their (captain, innnediately started for Chicago, camping that iiighf-, on the north fork of the Vermilion Kiver. It rained continually, the trail was very nniddy, and wo were obliged t(, swim most of the streams and many of the large sloughs, but we still pushed on, reaching Fort Dearborn the seventh day after my dei>arture, to the great joy of the waiting people. We re-organized, and had a foice of about one hun- dred and fifty men, Moigan conunanding. At the end of thirty days, news came of the defeat of the VVinne- bagoes, and of their treaty with the conunanding officer, who went from Jefferson Barracks, as before stated! Upon hearing this, Morgan disbaiided his comi*ny, who returned to their homes, leaving Fort Dearborn in 3f the Indian agent as before. ch NoTK.-Extract from a letter writi.n l.y Mr. Hubbard to his sister Eli/ibeth, at .MidtUetDWir, Coun. CurcAcio. .hilv :.'.->. 182T You will undoubtedly hear through the medium of the newspapers of the hostilities hitoly coinuienced by the Winnebago Indians. Governor Cass surprised us on the L>lst by his arrival, and brought us the first intelligence of the depredati^,ns comnutted by that tribe They commenced their hostilities at Prairie du Chien. by killing a family iu open day. Afterward, a i>arty of one hundred and fifty waylaid a bo'it descending the Mississippi, attacked it with great violence, and after a contest of two hours, witlidrew. The boat's crew defended themselves bravely: their loss was two men killed and six wounded. The Indians lost fourteen men killed; the number of wounded was not ascertained SMI' ' lof) I cannot d«iso this communication without adding my testimony r('jd to hear his discourse. He requested G. S. Hubbard, Esq., who understands the language, to inter- pret for him. The congregation went to the Indian encampment early in the day, and before preaching commenced in the town. The chief caused mats to be spread upon the ground for his white audience to sit upon. His Indian brethren were also seated near him ; he then commenced and addressed the assembly for almost an hour. Mr. Hubbard repeated with great dis- tinctness and perspicuity, each sentence, as spoken by the chief, and which was accurately written down at the time by Solomon Banta, Esq. It is proper to remark, that Ka ne-kuck was at one time given to intemperance. About four years since, he reformed, and is now esteemed a correct, pious, and excellent man. He has acquired an astonishing influence over his red brethren, and has in- duced all of his particular tribe, supposed to be uoav two hundred, and about one hundred Potawatomies who have been inveterate drunkards, to abstain entirely from the use of ardent spirits. It is proper further to remark that 165 Ka-ne-kiick is called a pi-ophot amonj^j the Indians, but is not the old prophet, brother to Tecnmseh, who is known to be not less odious among the Indians than among the whites, nor is he related to him. Ka-ne-kuck appears to be about forty years of age ; is over the ordinary size ; and, although an untutored savage, has much in his manner and personal appearance to mak(? him inter- esting. He is much attached to the whites, and has had his son at school, with a view to give him an. education. The speech now presented for publication derives much of its interest from the fact that it is the discourse of an uneducated man of the forest, who is believed to have done more in his sph(n-e of action in the cause of temperance, than any other man has effected, armed •with all the power which is conferred by learning and talent. The fact of the influence attributed to Ka-ne- kuck upon this subject, is fully attested by gentlemen who are intimately acquainted with these Indians, and have known them for many years, and is, therefore, •entitled to the fullest confidence. MyFhiexds : Whore are your thoughts to-day? Where were they yesterday? Were they fixed upon doing good? or were you drunk, tattling, or did anger rest in your hearts? I^ you have done any of these things, your Great Father in heaven knows it. His eye is upon you. He always sees you, and will always see you. He knows all your deeds. Ho has knowledge of the smallest transac- tions of your lives. Would you not be ashamed if your friends knew all your bad thoughts and actions? and are you not ashamed that your Groat Father knows tiiem, and that He marks them nicely ? You would be ashauKid of appearing here to-day with bloated faces and swelled eyes, occasioned by drunkenness. You will one day have to go down into the earth; what will you do then, if you have not, followed your Great Father's advice, and kept His lOfl 4tt commaiidmonts? Ho ling jfiven us a gmall path; it is hard to be followed; He tolls you it loads to hapn om. Some of you aro diHoouragnd fron. ''ollowing vhis path, hooause it is diffi(!ult to find. You take the broad road thrt leads to misory. But you ought not to be disoouragod; min*' the hook he has given for your instruction; :itt-nd to its (jommaiids, and obey thoin, and eaoh stop you take in this narron path will be oasier; the way will become smoother, and at ti«o ond great will bo the reward. Tho bn.ad road some of you choose, is full of wide and doop pits; those who follow it aro liable to fall into those pits ; they aro filled with fire for the punishment of all wick(?d and ill men. All professed drunkards, tattlers, liars, and meddling bodies are in tho broad way; they can never be re ceivod into good places; their deeds are dark; thoy never see light. Parents who do not teach their children tho (Hiferonce between good and evil, are in the bad road. Your Groat Father once came into this world. He came but once, and staid but a short time; that is tho reason the good path is so narrow. The bad spirit is with you always; he is abroad upon the face of the earth, and traveling in all places; that is tho reason whj the way that leads to misory is so broad. The Great Father gave you a good book filled with oomumnds. If you follow the commands, you will go into a good place and be happy forever; but if you do not keep them, you will go into a place prepared for the wicked, and suffer endless days and nights of grief. Some of you think you can indulge in drink once, and then you resolve to follow the good commands. But aro you sure, if you itidulgo once, you can refrain for the time to come? Your Groat Father sees all you do. Is it not almost certain that you will always be repeating bad deeds? You are all sin- ners ; you can not bo too much on your guard, lest you tread out o( the right way into the broad road. His eye notices the smallest thing, and if you wish to be good, your thoughts must be on your Great Father always; Ho takes pleasure when he sees your thoughts are placed on Him. If you would all be good you would all travel one road, and there would be but one road, and your Great Father would be with you always. But this can not be ; every one knows when he is doing good, and if he is always conscious of doing good, he will be received by 167 thtt Great Father ; thcroforo guard with oare every step you take in your life. One step a day m the narrow road is better than fifteen steps a lay in tdo road to ruin. Ti>e door of hoaven is always open, and the Great Father is glad to receive His children; those who go there will liavo happines) without end— will see their Great Father, and live with Him, and never be without Hin». If young folks would biit iiold as fast to thu good hook as old a, 1 crippled people do to their oanes which support them, there would bo no danger of di; )bey ing its commands. Kvery da; you nhtj Him the be te*- it is for you, and the easier it is for ; u to follow the good path. You must always noiice well whore ou stop, for foar you may be ternpteil out of tlio right path. When you see asBomblios of amusement, you (. i^lit to roileot that to ento' thoBi! may lea I you to do things contra/y to your Great Father's will. Ho hts said He will help those who keep H'" commands ; there- fore, you must aUvays notice your hoar*?! ; th^ heart is the fount- ain fro.n which good or ovil thoughts flow. You a, o not m- forms, incapable of knowh^dge, but the Great Father has so made you that you ma get a knowledge within yourselves, and if you are good, you will always see Him ; if you place your thoughts upon Him, He will never desert you ; but they who do not place their thoughts upon Him will be d(;serted- they travel the broad road and fall into the pit ; their lot ^ fixed — the> can not touch, nor see good ; they will be in endless darkness — they never can see their friends, their father, mother, brothers, r sisters ; their mends will b(> always grieving for them— they g(i where none hut fools go, such as 'runknrds, liars, tattlers, and those who treat old people ill ; they never ci%n taste good; notlung can mitigate the: sorrow an(^ >he torment they suffer. What will become of those wicked men who slight the commands of their Great Fatiier V He gave them a book containing istructions to enlighten them. Who made tliat book Y The Great tat' r made it for their good; long jigo he made it, that their and our hearts might be strong, and that I y reading it you might see Him, that you might -t lose yourselves ; a long time ago He gave this to instruct iiis children, and can there yet be sucli fools as will not receive instruction from so good a Father ? r I ,'» % B fi- people „.W Ii„„ ; „„ „„„„ i„ „,„ ,,^,„ ,„.,, " I'.'I"^ tz i7,':t :",', '"" "" '":;; • "^ "■"-- -^ • ■■-> '-■ bi, »,„„K / No »up|,l,n.tio„ will ,l,„, „v„i|-_ynu will hav/no « , you. fnon.1. oa„ „„t „,t„roo,lo, f,.,„. „•: .„.v| , ^„„ ^.„„ y :;n' '".r^ r";-"'"-- 'o ""^t hi..,. b,„ „,„ i:; yi)u >Mii go to the buinui^ j)it8. YourGro.. P.,l,o.l,.s i„p,.„.ed i„ ;,o„r l,oa,t. . k,.„„l,.,lg„ r K ,„.l an, <,v,l, „,„l sl,o,v„ y..„ how ,„ obey Ili,„ ; ff vou do no, *- tm. vv,l „o„„. when y„„ will ,„„ ,..„ J„„,.,„ ,„ ^; ';;;,"_^ you ,,,11 be 1„,„„ .larl<„o«_„,| yo,,,- for,,,,.,, wick-.l,,,./™,, "^ Ind,„„ bre. ,r,.„), ,l,ey ,1„ „„t d,i„k 8.ro„« li^ul »» ,l,ev o.K-e ni(Mit of horttilitioH was received th«^y departed, and on reaching Joliet they built a stockade fort, whi(;h they garrisoiied with on(i company, and proceeded to East I)u Piige, where a similar defense was constructed and garrisoned, and the remainder of the regiment marched to Starved Rock, where they were disbanded. Mr. Hubbard then joined a company of H(;outs for sixty days, and served in that capacity until the company was disbanded. While con- nected with (Jolonel Moore's regiment he commanded the advance, and found and buried the body of Kev. Adam Payne, who had been murdered by the Indians. Mr. Hubbard represented Vermilion County in the eighth General Assembly, which convened December 3, 183i?, and adjoui'ued March 2. 183;, Dui-ing this session he intioduced a bill for the construction of the Illinois & Mi(;higan Canal, which passed the house, but was defeated in the senate. He then substituted a bill for a railroad, which was also defeated in the senate by the casting vote oi the presiding officer. He attendtMJ every session of the Legislature thereafter to urgc^ the i)assage of a canal bill, until the bill was finally passed in 1835-36. Mr. Hubbard, Wm. F. Thornton, and Wm. B. Archer were api)ointed by Governor Duncan the first board of Canal Commissioners, in 1835. They served until 1841, when their successors were elected by the Legislature under a new law which deprived the Govei-nor of the appointive power. On July 4, 1830, the commencement of the canal was celebrated, and Mr. Hubbard dug the first spadeful of earth. In 1834 lie moved from Danville to Chicago and took :!.1 up his permanent residence there. He erected, at the corner of La Salle and South Water streets, the first large brick building in Chicago, which was called by the inhabitants - Hubbard^ s Folly," because of its size and the permanent manner of its construction. By act of the Legislature, February 11, 1835, the "Town of Chicago" was incorporated, with Gurdon S. Hubbard, John H. Kinzie, Ebenezer Goodrich, John K Boyer, and John S. C. Hogan as its first trustees. It comprised all the territory covered by sections 9 and 16, north and south fractional section 10, and fractional section 15, all in town 39 north, range U east of the third principal meridian; ''provided that the authority of the Board of Trustees of the said town of Chicago shall not extend over the south fractional section 10 until the same shall cease to be occupied by the United States."* He was also a director of the Chicago bi-anch of the State Bank of Illinois. He was one of the incorporators, of tiie Chicago Hydraulic Company, which built its works at the foot of Lake street, and supplied the south and a part of the west side with water until its franchises were purchased by the city in 1852. In 1848 he was one of the organizers of the Chicago Board of Trade. In 1836 he sold out his mercantile business and built a warehouse fronting on Kinzie stieet and the river, and oi-ganized the firm of Hubbard & Co.-Henry G. Hub- bard and Elijah K. Hubbard being his partners. This firm embarked lai-gely m the forwarding and commissionjmsiness^^id becam^in^ in a great. *From report of Commissioner of Public WoTHDeTsi^ 1880. 171 number of vessels and steamers forming the "Eagle Line," between Buffalo and the upper lakes. In this year he wrote for the ^tna Insurance Company the first policy ever issued in Chicago, and continued as agent of that and other companies until 1868. The previous year he had gone more extensively into the packing busi- ness, and had cut up and packed thirty-five hundred hogs. This business he continued, and was for liiany years known as the largest packer in the West. In 1808 his large packing house was deetroyed by fire, and he then abandoned the business. In later years, in connection with A. T. Spencer, he established a line of steamers to Lake Superior, among which were the Superior and Lady Elgin. The Supe- rior was lost on the rocks in Lake Superior, and the loss of the Lady Elgin is familiar history. After the loss of his packing house he engaged in the direct importation of tea from China, and organized a company for that purpose. The great fire of October 9, 1871, destroyed his business, burned his property, and crippled him finan- cially, and from that time he retired from active business life. The Hon. Grant Goodrich, in a memorial read before the Chicago Historical Society, says of him : ' ' There are few of the numerous veins of commerce and wealth-producing industries that draw to this pul- sating heart of the great West that boundless agricult- ural and mineral wealth, which through iron arteries and water craft is distributed to half a world, that have not felt the inspiration of his genius, and been quickened by his enterprise and energy. The assertion that in the progress of events, one who has reached the ordinary -4 '• 172 limit of hiiniar. life in thisag.) luts lived Icngei- than the oldest antediluvian, is surely voi-ified in the life of Mr. Hubhard. What marvelous transformation he wit- nessed. When he reached Mackinaw at scarce sixteen years of age, save in the vicinity of Deti-oit, Mic;higan the northern part of Indiana and Illinois, all Wisconsin and the limitless West whieh lies beyond-except here and there a trading i)ost-was an unbroken wilderness pathless, except by lakes and livers and the narrow trail ot the Indian and trapper. Sixty-eight years have passed, and what a cliange ! It chall.^nges all historic parallel Before the march of ciWlization the wild Indian has dis- appeared, or been driven toward the setting sun ; the dark forests and prairie, garden fields where he rovi^ in thepi-ideof undisputed dominion, have been transfornwl mto harvest fields, dotted with villages and cities, some of them crowded with huiuhe-ls of thousands of inhabit- ants, where the hum of vaiied industry is never silent, and the smoke of forges and facto.-ies darkens the sky'. "The canoe nnd open boat have given place to thou- sand-ton vessels, and steamers of twice that burden. The narrow trails over which the Indian trotted his i)ony are traversed or crossed by loads of iroii, on which iron horses rush along with the speed of the wind. The amazing change may be moi-e strikinglv realized when we reme.nber that while within the present limits of Cook County, there were then only three dwellings of white men outside of the garrison inclosure, there now dwell more than eight hundred thousand people, and that the seat of political power in this great Nation has Ix-HMi transferred to the valley of the Mississippi ; that it has made it possible to scale the heights of the Eocky 173 Mountains with railroads, and bring the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans into near neighborliood, and bind the East and West together with bands of steel. " History has made immortal the names and achieve- ments of men wlio have subdued, or founded, states and empires by force and sanguinary war. Do not these early pioneers, who, armed with the arts of peace, bravely met the dangers and endured the toils necessary to subjugate the great western wilderness to the abodes of peace and blessings of education, enlightened free- dom, and the elevating appliances of civilization, merit equal admiration and gratitude as lasting 'i '•Those who believe that in the world's coming history its crowned heroes and benefactors are to be those who « win the bloodless victories of peace, and by acts of self- sarfjrifice and beneficence scatter widest the blessings of Christian civilization, will hold these men, and Gurdon S. HuW>ard as a j^'mve among them, in highest honor and esteem." We turn now to the personal, social, and private life of Mr Hubbard. WluUi perfection can be claimed for no man, he appears to ha^ve Ijiorne himself, in all the duties pertaining to tliese relatiofw, in a manner deserving commendation and respect. He was married in 1831 to Miss Elenora Berry, of Ohio, who died in Oiicago in 1838, six days after the birth of their son. In 18413 he was married to Miss Mary Ann Hubbard, of Chicago, who, through the years of his helpless blindness, attended upon his every want with the coi staiit devotion of a true and loving wife. In the discharge of his filial and fraternal obUgationn he set an example of highest admiration. As bef«>re : ^ated, liiiriiffy Kui 174 during his service with the Fur Company he gave eighty dollars a year of his wages of one hundred and twenty dollars, toward the maintenance of his mother and dependent sisters. Afterwards, when his income was increased, enlarged their allowance, and until his mother died was their main support, which was continued to his sisters down to his death. To provide agamst all con- tingencies, he executed a deed of trust, some twenty years ago, and also by his last will, provided for their support during life. Socially, he was gei .al, sympathetic, and affable. His remarkable life and experiences made him interesting and instructive. He was thoughtfully care- ful of the feelings, and charitable to the faults, of others. Firm m his convictions and principles, but never intol- erant, he was always the dignified and courteous gentleman. As a neighbor he was kind, and as a friend faithful and confiding. His heart overflowed with sym- pathy for the poor and unfortunpte, and his hand was always open for their relief. As a husband he was care- fully tender, loving and true ; as a parent affectionate-, generous, and indulgent. As a citizen he was patriotic and earnest in the promotion of what he believed for the best interests of his country. These worthy traits of charac- ter are the more remarkable, when we remember that his youth and early manhood were spent away from parental restraints, and amidst scenes of temptation and influences so adverse to strict morals and Christian obligations. But the religious principles imbibed from his mother's lips and the schools of those early days, seemed to have exercised a controlling influence over him. I think it due him I should give the following extracts 175 from letters of Ramsey Crooks, the active head of the American Fur Company, and one from Mr. Stewart, the Secretary : Under date of April, 1820, Mr. Crooks says : *'Gurdon has thus far behaved himself in an exemplary manner for one of his age." In a letter of March, 1826, urging Mrs. Hubbard to visit her son, he says : " You will see him at his daily duties, and you will see what will gladden the heart of a Christian mother, how faithfully he performs his daily duties, how much ho is loved and respected by his em- ployers and friends." August 3, 1821, Mr. Stewart writes her : "He spends his winters with an old gentleman of finished education and correct gentlemanly manners. His account of your son is as flattering as a fond mother could wish. * ^• He is strictly sober, and, I believe, a great economist. I feel that I state the truth when I tell you I think him exempt from the vices which too frequently attend youth of his age." These commendations speak for them- selves. In his church associations he was an Episcopalian. He was one of those who organized St. James Episcopal Church, the first of that denomination existing in •Chicago, and of whicli he subsequently became a communicant. In January, 18S3, he was taken with chills, and in the following May lost the sight of his left eye, from which time he suffered from blood poisoning and frequent abscesses, and from almost constant pains in his eyes and neck. In the succeeding April, ilie eye was removed, and, though eighty-two years old, without anesthetics of any kind, or any one to hold his hands; the steady I I •14 I Mi 1 .1- 170 nerve and solf control that so distinguished him in his earher years, enabled him simply to lie down and have his eye cut out. In July, 18S5, the sight of his remain- ing eye was extinguished, leav ing him in the horrors of total darkness ,; about one year ago, his remaining eye was also removed, greatly relieving him from torturing pains. Such a calamity and rayless darkness can mniher be imagined nor described. But in him, the fruits of the discipline of suffering were beautifully exhibited in uncomplaining submission to the Divine will, and patient endurance of his affliction, through all the long night of his blindness ; in his grateful sense oP the sympathy of friends, and tender thankfulness for the helpful care and attentions of his loved ones, it was manifest that, while material tilings were excluded from his sight, his nature was more fully conformed and assimilated to that of his Divine Eedeemer, by the contemplation of the spiritual and unseen ; and on the 14th day of September, 1886, at the age of eighty-four years, he fell peacefully to sleep with the full assurance he would awaken into supernal light, with restored and immortal vision." h ,\ 179 UNDKRWRITKKS' MEMORIAL. CiiiCAiiO, October 19, 1886. Mrs. Gi'RDON S. Hvhuaud— Dear Madame: I hand you here- with a copy of minute adopted by the Chicago Fire Under- writers' Association, at a meeting held September 27, last, expressive of the appreciation in which the life and services of Mr. Hubbard are held by its members. It is hardly necessary for me to assure you that the minute expresses a genuine feeling of sorrow that a long and useful life has come to an end. Such sorrow, however, is temj^ cred by the reflection that he. whose energy and integrity have been among the motives the result of which has been the mighty city among whose citizens we are proud to be reckoned, has gone to the reward that awaits the just in the "City of our God." 1 am, your obedient servant, R. N, Trim INGHAM, Secretary, MEMORIAL, m ai At a special meeting of the Chicago Fire Underwriters' Association, held September 27. 1880, the following minute was unanimously adopted : Gurdon S. Hubbard, the oldest resident of Chicago, and the first of its underwriters, was born at Windsor, Vermont, August 22, 1802, and died September 14, 1880. It is eminently proper that the representatives of the underwriting interests of to-day should meet to commemorate in some fitting words liis life and death. Mr. Hubbard came to Chicago as a fur trader nearly seventy years ago. He found a fort and an Indian trading post. Before he died the trading post had grown to be the fourth city in the United States. In his life he saw the Indian give place to the settler, the fort suc- ceeded by the village, the village by tlie town, and the town by a great city. He saw the wilderness change into the wealth-producing farms and the comfortable homes of millions of people, and the fur barter of a few Indians at the mouth of the Chicago River changed into the mighty commerce of a city of six hundred thousand inhabitants. Mr. Hubbard did not sit supinely and (180) I It^l watch this ^rowtli <■ tent to icap the harvest without beinj< himself an a( " lah^rer in the field. He not only shared in the (•< rcial enterprises that made the city what it is, but h' w a-< the originator and the pioneer in many of the mo- important ol th< ^ .as one of the first and lie most active as a nu .n developing trade with tiie surrounding: country; ht Lostered the transportation interest of • lakes and was himself at one time a large shipownei ; he was one of the first, if not the first, to establish the industry, now so impor- tant, of packing cattle and hogs, and he was the first representative of that great interest wbich goes hand in hand with commerce and manufacti, protecting and sustaining them; the interest of which we assembled here are the present representatives. Mr. Hubbard wrote the first insurance policy ever written in Chicago, fifty years ago, for the ^tna Insu- rance Company, of Hartford. He continued to repre- sent the ^Etna and other insurance conii)anies many years after this, at first by himself, and later in i)artner- ship with the late Charles H. Hunt, and his name is closely associated with both the fire and the marine insurance transactions of those early days. Throughout his entire cai-eer as merchant, manufacturer, and underwriter, Mr. Hubbard maintained a course marked by so much integ- rity, that we of a later generation may well record as we do in these few words our apprt>ciation of his life and our respect for his character. Therefore, Be if Resolved, That in the death of Mr. Hubbard we feel not only the loss of a true friend, a useful and hon- orable tdtizen, a Christian gentleman, but of the father of our profession in this city. ^. ^> sA; 'K. ^^ ^ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) 1.0 I.I t 1^ 12.0 2.5 2.2 1:25 i 1.4 6" 1= 1.6 V] <^ /i ^m e .% ^J' -^..^ >^^ ^ 4. m /; / Pnotographic Sciences Corporation i. N iV ^ ■^ \\ ^ ^\ ■.«(yA 6^ :^ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.V M580 (716) 872-4503 <■ ^ Mr, ^ to "''^x* m )> 182 Besolved, That the association do extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family, and as they mourn the loss of a kmd husband and father, we also mourn the loss of a true man, one whose many years of upright and faithful leadership commanded not only our respect and confi- dence, but our love and admiration, one whose entire life-record is a golden legacy beyond all price. Resolved, That this minute be spread on our records and a copy be forwarded to the family of the deceased.' S. M. Moore, Geo. C. Clarke, Edward M. Teall, Wm. E. Eice, , Hekry H. Brown, n^r. TXT T^ Committee. Charles W. Drew, President. R. N. Trlmlvgham, Secretary. TRIHUTE OF RKV. G. S. F. SAVAGE, D. D. In the recent death of Mr. Gurdon S. Hubbard, at the ripe age of eighty-four years, there passed away not only the oldest settler of Chicago but a man who has filled a large and honorable place f om the beginning in her wonderful history. Well-merited tributes have been paid by the public press to his character and achievements as a citizen, a business man, and a friend. But there is one aspect of his character, especiallv developed in the closing years of his aventful life, which deserves a more distinct recognition, viz.: his strong Christian faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Cnrist as his personal Savior; his love of the Bible as the nspxred Word of his heavenly Father, and his uncomplaining submission to God's will under the .evere discipline of his provi 183 In middle life he became a professed Christian — a member of the Protestant Episcopal church, whose services he greatly prized. He was one of the founders and officers of the first Episcopal church established in Chicago — the St. James — and a liberal sup- porter of the same. And it was with much paui and large sacri- fice to himself that he left her communion, when dissatisfied with what he believed to be the unscriptural and .-itualistic doctrines and practices which had crept into the church of his love. Yet, as a matter of principle, when the time came for action, he did not hesitate to leave it, and join the then small and despised Reformed Episcopal church, cheerfully giving his influence, counsel, and pecuniary aid to this new and struggling organization. During all those years of intensely active business life he maintained a Christian character above reproach. But it was in the closing years of his life, when the infirmities of age, and disease, and blindness laid him aside from his accustomed activi- ties, that there was such a marked development of Christian character, and of a rich Christian experience, as attracted the special attention of friends, and became worthy of special note. Amid all the weaknesses, total blindness, and sufferings of the last two years of his life he did not lose his interest in passing events at home, or abroad; he wanted to know the news and the religious intelligence which the daily and weekly press furnished. He listened with pleasure to the reading of many books of his- tory, biography, and general literature, and especially to devo- tional religious books, but he would readily turn from all these to the Bible, and was not satisfied unless several chaptf 's were read to him daily. His love for the Bible was remarkable. He fed with delight upon its truths. He found in its teachings that which brought a peace, a comfort, a blessedness to his soul which he found nowhere else. The Lord Jesus Christ was to him a present and personal helper and friend, enabling him to bear cheerfully and uncomplainingly his infirmities and pains. Family worship he greatly enjoyed. Prayer to him was a reality and was often upon his lips; and nothing gave him more delight than to have a Christian friend come and pray with him, and converse upon religious themes. His sweet patience and submission to all God's dealings with him, revealed the depth and strength of his Christian character and attainments. 184 The Sabbath morning before his death, having had a night of suflFer.ng, he talked with his wife calmly and clearly about what she should do, expressing in fervent, loving words his appreciation of the tender care which she had given him; reminding her that it was time for family prayers, and when the Scriptures were read the hymn, « My faith looks up to thee," was sung and prayer ottered, he, with feeble and broken accents, joined in repeatin^- -^ -^ .-, -X- Promptitude and courage were equally his characteris- tics. When Fort Dearhorn was set on fire he swam the river to get to it, as no canoe was ready. On the out- break of the Winnebago war of 1827, it was desired to send a messenger to the settlements south of Chicago and on the east side of the State. Mr. Hubbard was the vol- unteer messenger, and worked through great dangers and difficulties. Keturning from Danville with fifty men, he came to the Vermilion River, which was swollen with rains, full, wide, and swift. The horses werr driven into the stream to swim over, but only made a cn-cuit and returned. Mr. Hubbard threw off his coat and mounted " Old Charley, " a stout, steady, horse, which the rest might be induced to follow, and rode in, but in midstream Old Charley became unmanageable ; then Mr. Hubbard threw himself off on the upper side, caught the horse by the mane, and, swimming with his free hand, guided the animal across, while his friends were fearful he would be washed under the horse or be struck by its hoofs, and so lose his life. •^ ->^ * * * -x- * ^ Mr. Hubbard finally settled in Chicago in 1833 or 1834. His business lay in many places at once, but now was centered here. From this time on, his career was not among dangers to life and limb, and his adventures were 187 tlie peaceful ones of oommeice. But as he had heen the pioneer trader, he was still one of the foremost in all new- things. •^ V: While husy for the public in various ways he was making money for himself, and using it generously. The land speculations of 1836-3T he turned to good ac- count. His losses in the great fire, when he was past the age of active effort to retrieve his fortunes, were great, but he still retained a handsome competence, at least. He lived in a plain, unostentatious way, from his natural tastes, and he was a familiar figure at the meetings of the Historical Society and of the Old Settlers. In poli- tics he was a Whig, and afterwards a Republican. * -.<: ^t Lately Mr. Hubbard's health failed, both by age and by disease. Three years ago, an abscess compelled the removal of one eye ; a year later the other was removed. Then the old pioneer, in the midst of the great city he had helped to build, weak as a child and helpless as an infant, sat two years in darkness, bearing his lot patiently, and waiting the stroke of death, which fell at last all gently on his hoary head. (From the Chicago Times, September 18, 1886.) GURDON S. HUBBARD'S FUNERAL. IMPRESSIVE SERVICHS, I'AnTlCIPATED IX BY NEARLY AT-L THE REMAINING PIONEERS OF CHICAGO. The remains of Gurdon S. Hubbard, the pioneer, were consigned to their last resting place yesterday. The funeral, while quiet and unostentatious, was a notable one in many respects. In the morning the remains lay in the front parlor of the Hubbard resi- dence, No. 143 Locust street. 188 Tho furncral services took place at the New Enffland Coiiffre- ffatio.ml Churcl., Delaware place and Dearborn avenue. From the moment the doors were opened, a cc^aseless stream of people entered, and at 2 o'clock every seat except those reserviMl for the mourners was occupied. The funeral party was met at the door by Kev. J. D. VVdson, pastor of St. John's Reformed Episcopal Church of which Mr. Ilubbar.! was a men.ber. The pall-bearers werJ Ex-Governor William Bross, Judge John 1). Caton, General Buck- ingham Colonel John I. Bennett, G. M. Higginson, J. McGregor Adams, 1. C. Dousman, and O. B. Green. The clergyman led the process.on down the centre aisle, reciting in solemn tones the buna service of the Reformed Episcopal Church, beginnino- "I am the resurrection," etc., *he congregation rising to their" feet ami the organ sending forth Jow, mournful notes, which added to the solemnity of the occasion. The scene was one which must have made a strange and lasting impression upon those who were present. The congregation was an assemblage such as has seldom gatherecl in this or any other city it was a sea ot white heads, representing the men who came to Chicago when there was no Chicago, and who have lived to see the results of the work they began. Many of them were accompa- nied by their equally venerable wives. Other patriarchs sat alone, their helpmeets existing in memory only. With bowed heads tliey sat, their faces wearing an expression indicating that they were moved by deeper emotions tiian those occasioned by the loss of a tnend and neighbor. Every mind must have felt an awaken- ing of memories of early days, and of events which constitute the history of Chicago. On the platform l)ehind the pulpit, sat Rev. Dr. R. W. Patterson, also an early settler, and the venerable Rev. Dr. Bascom, a Chicagoan since the thirties, who performed the marriage ceremony in 1843 which united the deceased and the widow who survives him. When the reading of the service was concluded, the choir chanted the first twelve verses of the Ninetieth Psalm. Rev. Dr. Wilson read from the Scriptures, after which Rev. Dv. Patterson oflfered a fervent prayer. The choir followed by singing the hymn "Rock of Ages." Then Dr. Bascom briefly eulogized the deceased. He gave only an outline of his adventurous career, mentioning merely enough to quicken the memory of his hearers 180 as to events most of thoin wore familiar with. Ho laid strosg upon the skill and fidelity of Mr. Hubbard, which euiinently (ittod him for the foundation of those business entiirprisos which have been the secret of the wonderful suscess of this city ; his unfailinjj^ integrity, his trustworthiness and reliability. Dr. Bascom said that ia all his years of residence in (Jhicago he had ni'vc^r heard one word impeaching Mr. Hubbard's honesty. He also eulogized him for his sense of justice and generosity, and his zeal as a churchman, having identified himself with the Reformed Episcopal Church at its formation, and remained a member until the time of his death. The speaker also gave an account of Ihe last days and death of the deceased, remarking that those who mourned his death could look back with unspeakable satisfaction upon the fact that the manner of his death was peaceful. H(! was perfectly resigned, for months calmly awaiting the summons. During this period he was sustained by Christian hope, and enjoyed the rest and peace that he found at last, after an honorable and useful life. Mr. Bascom concluded by referring briefly to the lesson to be drawn from the demise of Mr. Hubbard, especially by most of those who heard him, whose advanced ages lent emphasis to it. The closing prayer was offered by Rev. Arthur liittle. After the benediction had been pronounced, the lid of the casket was removed, and the venerable men and women filed slowly by, to view for the last time the features of the deceased. There were very few who did not avail themselves of the privilege. The face of the departed wore a peaceful and almost life-like expression. Time had left few traces of its ravages. The face was that of a much younger and heartier man than many of those who gazed upon it. In a few minutes the lid of the casket was again fiiuilly closed, and the funeral procession retraced its steps. The interment was at Graceland, which was reached by carriages. There were no services at the cemetery other than the offering of a prayer by Rev. Arthur Little as the remains were consigned to the earth.