OHIO STATEWIDE FILES - HISTORY: Chapter 4 (Abbott, John S. C., 1875) *************************************************************************** OHGENWEB NOTICE: All distribution rights to this electronic data are reserved by the submitter. Reproduction or re-presentation of copyrighted material will require the permission of the copyright owner. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. *************************************************************************** File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Kay L. Mason keziah63@yahoo.com August 2, 1999 *************************************************************************** Chapter IV Life among the Ohio Indians In the account we have given of Braddock's defeat, there is allusion to Colonel James Smith, who was a prisoner in Fort Duquesne at that time. His history is so remarkable, and sheds such light upon the customs of the In- dians, as to be worthy of special record. It is said that he was the first Anglo-American who wrote an account of his adventures in the vast wilderness beyond the Alleghenies. For an account here given we are indebted to the very interesting "Sketches of Western Adventure," by Rev. John A M'Clung, D.D. In the spring of the year 1755, James Smith, then a lad but eighteen years of age, accompanied a party of three hundred men from the western frontiers of Pennsylvania, across the Allegheny mountains, for the purpose of opening a road, by which artillery could be transported for the attack of Fort Duquesne. When the party had reached Bedford Springs he was sent back to urge forward some wagons which were in the rear. Having fulfilled his mission, he was returning to the main body with another young man, both mounted, when they were fired upon, from ambush, by a party of three Indians. Smith's companion fell dead. Smith was unhurt, but his terrified horse so plunged and reared that he was thrown violently to the ground. The Indians sprang upon him. One of them could speak English. He asked if more white men were coming up. Upon being answered in the negative, two of them seized him by the arm and hurried him along, hour after hour, with the utmost possible speed, over the mountains. Scarcely a word was spoken. At night they encamped, built their fire, and cooked their supper. They shared their provisions with their prisoner, and though they guarded him vigilantly, he was treated with much kindness. The next day they pressed on so rapidly that Smith thought they must have traversed fifty miles. Late in the evening they reached the western side of Laurel Mountain, when they saw, in the distance, the gleam of the fires of an Indian encampment. The captors fired their guns, and unitedly raised the shrill, piercing shriek, called the scalp halloo. The Indians in the camp below responded with a similar cry, and rushed out to meet the party, whose yell had an- nounced that they were returning in triumph. Though the Indians in the camp belonged to another tribe, the visitors were treated with great hospitality. The next morning the march was continued, and on the evening of the next day they reached Fort Duquesne. As they approached they raised again the scalp halloo. This threw the who garrison into commotion. It was recognized as the shout of victory on the part of the Indian allies of the French. Cannon were fired, drums beaten, and bugle peals sounded through the forest as Indians and Frenchmen rushed out to greet the returning party. The Indians, who were very numerous, immediately formed in two lines, about six or eight feet apart. There were men, women and boys, and all were armed with hatchets, ramrods or switches, and seemed animated with the great expectation of some great sport. Smith looked upon the movement with wonder, having no knowledge of the fate which awaited him. It was soon explained to him taht he was to run the gauntlet, as it was called; that is, he was to run between two lines, and receive a blow from each of the Indians as he passed. One of his captors kindly told him to run as fast as he possibly could, and the affair would sooner be over. There was no escape. Smith was stripped almost naked, and entered upon the terrible ordeal. Straining every nerve, he set out upon the race, and blows of cruel severity were showered down upon him. Mangled, faint, and bleeding, he had arrived near the end, when a power- ful chief, with the blow of a club upon his head, felled him to the ground. Soon recovering from his bewilderment, he sprang to his feet and started forward, when a handful of sand was thrown violently into his eyes. Thus blinded, and in acutest pain, he still endeavored to grope his way along, and he was again knocked down and beaten so mercilessly as to become quite senseless. He recollected nothing more till he found himself in the hospital of the fortress, with his flesh bruised almost to a jelly, from head to feet. Here his captors, who had treated him kindly, visited him. Young Smith inquired what he had done to merit such cruel treatment. They replied that he had done nothing, but that this was the custom - that is was the greeting which they always gave their captives. It was, they said, like the English custom of shaking hands and saying, "How do you do." But they assured him that now, having passed through this ceremony, he would be treated with all kindness. It may be proper to suggest that, from this polite reception by the sav- ages, may have originated the greeting which young men in our highest seats of learning often give to strangers who come to share their intellectual and social privileges. The practice which the savages called running the gaunt- let, the college gentlemen call hazing. The amusement consists in pouring lamp oil down one's back and over one's coat; in confining their victim in a room, and stifling him, almost to strangulation, with tobacco smoke; three or four stout young men will seize one feeble one, to the humiliation of dancing a hornpipe or sing a song at their bidding. Agreeable as these past- imes may be to the civilized and cultured young gentlemen who perform them, it is earnestly to be hoped that the custom will not spread to be in vogue with the gentlemen and ladies of the most refined circles of society, in their reception of distinguished guests from abroad. Smith inquired of his captors if they had received any tidings of the advance of General Braddock's army. They replied exultingly, that their scouts were watching him every day, and that they would soon shoot them all down like pigeons. Slowly Smith recovered from his merciless beating. On the morning of the ninth of July, he was hobbling along, by the aid of a stick, on the battlements of the fort, when he perceived an unusual com- motion in the garrison. Crowds of Indians were around the great gate. Open barrels of powder and bullets were placed there. They were eagerly filling their powder horns and pouched. Then, about four hundred in number, they followed a company of French regulars, and entering one of the trails of the forest, soon disappeared from view. The force under General Braddock was vastly superior to that of his as- sailants. And when Smith soon learned that Braddock was within a few miles of the fort, he had no doubt that the British regulars would speedily dis- perse the mongrel band sent out to meet them. He was therefore quite elated with the prospect of a speedy release from captivity. About the middle of the afternoon an Indian runner came to the fort, an- nouncing the utter defeat of Braddock; and as the sun was sinking beneath the horizon, the forest seemed filled with those shrill, triumphant yells, the scalp halloo. Soon an Indian band appeared driving before them twelve British regulars, stripped naked and painted black, an evidence that they were doomed to death by torture. The savages were frantic with joy, dancing, yelling, brandishing their tomahawks, and waving gory scalps in the air. To the eternal disgrace of the French commander, he allowed these unhappy prisoners of war to be led to the banks of the Allegheny, and there to be put to death with all the lingering horrors of savage barbarity. From the battlements of the fort, Smith witnessed the awful scene, and listened to shrieks of the sufferers. Two or three days after this shocking spectacle, young Smith was demanded of the French by his captors, and embarking with them in a canoe, ascended the Allegheny River to a small Indian town about forty miles above Fort Duquesne. They then, leaving their canoe, struck through the woods into what is now the State of Ohio, until they reached a small Indian village called Tullihas, on the western branch of the Muskingum River. Until this time Smith had suffered much anxiety respecting his ultimate fate. He knew not but that he was reserved for the awful tortures which he had already seen inflicted upon his countrymen. But here, the morning after his arrival, the principle members of the tribe gathered around him and entered upon the rather formidable ceremony of adopting him as a son of the tribe. For a time he was somewhat astonished at the procedure, as he knew not its aim and end. An aged chief commenced with great dexterity plucking out his hair by the roots. Occasionally he dipped his finger in ashes to render his hold upon the hair more firm. Patiently Smith submitted to the operation. Soon his head was entirely bald, with one tuft only left upon the top, called the scalp lock. This was carefully braided and ornamented with several silver spangles. It was a part of Indian chivalry to leave this tuft of hair, so that the enemy, if victorious, could take the scalp. His nose and ears were bored and earrings inserted. He was then stripped entirely naked, and his body was profusely and fantastically painted. A strip of cloth, in the Indian fashion, was wound around his loins, a gor- geous belt of wampum entwined around his neck, and silver bands fastened around his right arm. He now stood forth, in appearance, a veritable Indian. It would have required a very keen eye to have distinguished him from one of the natives. Thus far Smith was entirely ignorant of the object of these strange pro- cedures. He had many fears that he was being decorated for some appalling sacrifice. These operations were all performed in one of the wigwams, but few being present. The old chief then took him by the hand, led him out into the open air, and gave three of those shrill, piercing whoops which only an Indian's throat can utter. Instantly every inhabitant of the village, all the men, women and children, were gathered around him. The venerable chief, still holding him by the hand, addresses the tribe in a long and animated speech, unintelligible of course to Smith. When he had ceased speaking, three buxom, mirthful Indian maidens came forward, and seizing him dragged him to the river which flowed near by. They drew him into the water, up nearly to their armpits, and commenced scrubbing him with the greatest vehemence. Occasionally all three would place their hands upon his head and endeavor to force it under water. He, thinking their object was to drown him, made manful resistance. One of the young girls perceiving his alarm, burst into a merry laugh, exclaim- ing, in broken English, "We no hurt you! We no hurt you!" He then submitted, and they plunged him under the water again and again, giving his whole body as thorough a washing as any ablution could confer. It was bitter cold weather, and notwithstanding the violent discipline to which he had been subjected, he shivered as he was led ashore, dripping with water. Several Indians then came forward and dressed him in a shirt of deer skin, richly fringed, and with moccasins and leggins gorgeously colored with a bear skin; a lighted pipe, filled with fragrant tobacco, was placed in his hands, and also a tomahawk, with pouch, flint and steel. The chiefs took seats by his side, and, for a few moments, smoked in per- fect silence. Then one of the orators arose, and in a very impressive manner addressed the young man of their adoption in the following words: "My son, you are now one of us. Hereafter you have nothing to fear. In accordance with an ancient custom, you have been adopted in the room of a brave man who has fallen in battle. Every drop of white blood has been wash- ed from you veins. We are now your brothers, and are bound by our laws to love you, to defend you, and to avenge your injuries, as much as if you were born in our tribe." He was then formally introduced to all the warriors, and was received by every member of the tribe with touching testimonials of regard. In the even- ing a great feast was prepared in honor of the occasion. Young Smith was then presented with a large wooden bowl and spoon. The bowl he was then in- vited to fill with a very palatable preparation of boiled corn and tender venison finely hashed. This was simmering over the fire in a huge kettle, and all the priety presided at the entertainment. There was no rudeness, no boisterous merriment. The festivities were closed late in the evening by a brilliant bonfire and a war dance. All the warriors were decorated with paint and waving plumes, and with their most gorgeous military trappings. Early the nest morning nearly all their braves, thoroughly armed and well mounted, set off, in single file, for a predatory excursion across the Ohio River, among the scattered cabins and feeble settlements in Western Virginia. They left two or three renowned hunters to provide their wives and children with game during their absence. In leaving the village the warriors, apparently impressed with the perils of their enterprise, preserved the most profound silence. The leader of the band, however, a distinguished chief, chanted a dirge-like air called "The Traveler's Parting Song." When they had fairly entered the forest and were beyond sight of the village, they fired a farewell salute. They discharged their rifles slowly, in regular succession, commencing in the front and end- ing with the rear. Soon after the warriors left, all the young people, the lads and the lasses prepared for a dance. It will be remembered that young Smith was but eighteen years of age, still he was not sufficiently acquainted with Indian customs to take a part in the dance. He was an interested looker on. The dancers formed themselves in two lines, about twenty feet apart, fac- ing each other. Some musical genius had a carefully prepared gourd in his hand, with rind thin and sonorous, partially filled with beads. With this rude instrument he contrived to make a sort of jingling melody, beating time with considerable precision. All the voices were joined in concert with this leader, singing a monotonous, plaintive song, to whose cadences it was easy to keep time with their feet. They were all dressed in their gayest costume, of moccasins and soft-deer skin leggins, richly fringed and decorated in brightest colors with beads, shells, and spangles. Their forms seemd to be the perfection of human statuary, tall, lithe and graceful. Their plump arms and beautifully-formed chests were bare. The color of their skin attracted admiration by its beauty; it perfection resembled, in its healthful spotless purity, burnished copper, such as we see in coin fresh from the mint. There were few ball-rooms in Christendom which could present so fascinating a group as was that morning exhibited by Indian young men and maidens on the green sward which lined the banks of the Muskingum. Young Smith seems to have possessed a very philosophic and observing frame of mind. He watched the movements of the dancers very closely, and was much amused in seeing that human hearts beat beneath their copper-colored bosoms with the same throbbings which are experienced beneath complexions more fair. The dance consisted of the two lines advancing towards each other with mea- sured tread until they met. They would then exchange loving glances, tender words, and not unfrequently an affectionate pat upon the cheek, and again, in unbroken lines, draw back to their first positions. This was continued hour after hour. The young girls seem to understand the arts of coquetry and the most attractive mode of playing off their charms fully as well as their sisters in more enlightened communities. He was greatly surprised, and our readers will probably be, in learning that the maidens, instead of the young men, took decidedly the lead in all the acts of courtship. The young men were far more shy, coy and bashful than the girls. The lovemaking was principally on the part of the maidens; and they manifested no hesitancy in showing their preference for some handsome young hunter or warrior, and in urging upon him their love. Smith was treated with the greatest kindness, even with polite attentions. He was embarrassed with the innumerable invitations he had to "dine out." The Indians had no particular hours for their meals. It was their custom to invite every visitor to eat, the moment he entered their wigwams. The In- dians themselves seemed to have an unlimited capacity for storing away food. They deemed any refusal to partake of their hospitality as an affront. Smith wished to bring himself into harmony with the customs of his new and kind friends, and often suffered from the amount of food he felt constrained to accept. After the war party had been gone about a week, one morning an aged chief, who, in consequence of his age, had remained at home, invited Smith to go a-hunting with him. At the distance of a few miles from the village they discoverd very distinct and fresh buffalo tracks. The old chief examined them with extraordinary attention, having his fears evidently aroused. Noiselessly and with the utmost caution he followed the tracks, keenly glan- cing his eyes in every direction. Smith was much surprised at this singular conduct, and asked why he did not push on more rapidly, so as to get a shot at the buffaloes. "Hush!" exclaimed the chief, putting his hand to his lips. "It may be buffalo; it may be Catawba." He then added in a low tone of voice: "The Catawbas have long been at war with our tribe. They are the most cunning and wicked people in the world. A few years ago a part of Catawbe warriors ap- proached our camp by night. They sent out some spies, mounted on buffalo hoofs, who left their tracks around our camp, and they returned to the main body. In the morning, our warriors seeing the buffalo tracks, set out in pursuit of the herd. They soon fell into an ambush, were fired upon and many were killed. "We fought them fiercely. They soon gave way. We pursued them. In anti- cipation of this they had stuck a number of slender reeds in the grass, sharpened at the end, and dipped in rattlesnake poison. Our young men pur- suing headlong were several of them pricked by these poisoned reeds. Many were thus killed and scalped. The Catawba," added the chief, "is a very bad Indian; a perfect devil for mischief." A careful examination of the tracks at length convinced the chief that they were the veritable footprints of the buffalo. The herd had, however, wandered too far to be overtaken. A few days after this Smith, who seemed to have secured the entire confidence of his new friends, set out alone upon a hunting excursion. The primeval forest, in all its gloom and grandeur, spread far and wide around him in an unbroken solitude. Anxious to return laden with game in evidence of his enterprise and skill, he struck out boldly, following, with hurried footsteps, the winding path of a fresh buffalo trail. With eager steps he pressed on several miles, not sufficient- ly observing the direction in which he moved. Evening came on, and conscious that he was far from home, he determined to cut across the hills, and thus reach the village by a shorter way. He soon found himself bewildered, and utterly lost in the inextricable mazes of the forest. He fired his gun several times, hoping to obtain some responsive signal from his friends. But the wail of the forest, as the night breeze swept its branches, alone greet- ed his ear. Through the whole night he wandered alone unable to find his way home. In the morning a party of Indians set out in search of him. They could scarcely conceive of any one being so stupid as to lose his way in the woods. Some of them suspected that he had deserted them. They followed his trail with that wonderful Indian sagacity which is almost miraculous. Soon, ob- serving the zigzag manner in which he had marched, they became satisfied that the white man, like a child, got lost. Shouts of derisive laughter burst from their lips. At length they found him. Though they still treated him kindly, he was mortified in seeing how contemptuously they regarded his unfortunate adven- ture. Upon their return to the village the chief took from him his rifle saying: "A child should not be entrusted with the weapons of a man." A bow and arrows, the weapons of a boy, were then placed in his hands. It was deemed necessary that he, an ignorant white man, should be placed under a sort of tutelage. They, therefore, entrusted him to the care of a chief named Tontileango, a renown hunter and warrior. Under his kind in- structions he learned many things which he had never known before. He was taught the difficult art of trapping beaver, how to creep within gun-shot of the timid and watchful deer, how safely to encounter the ferocious grizzly bear, and in what way to pursue and overtake the swift-footed buffalo. Smith proved to be an apt scholar. He was very ambitious and learned rapidly. During the autumn he acquired a high reputation for the skill he displayed. Day after day he returned from his hunting excursions laden with game, to the great joy of the women and children who were entirely dependent upon the hunters for their subsistence. Winter came with its freezing blasts, and snow fell to the depth of four or five feet on a level. Hunting became exceedingly difficult. It was almost impossible to approach within gun-shot of the long-legged deer. The only resource then was to hunt bears. They would climb some gigantic decayed tree, half dead, which had an opening and a hollow in the trunk many feet, often fifty, from the ground. Here the bears would find shelter for snug winter quarters. The interior was generaly dry as tinder, and by dropping in some coals could be easily set on fire. The bear hunter would climb the tree and apply a torch to the inside of the hollow. If a bear were there he would be speedily waked from his winter doze and driven out by the flame and smoke. The hunter, watching below, as soon as the immense creature, blinded and bewildered, emerged from his re- treat, would, with unerring aim, plant a bullet between his eyes, and the monster would fall, in dying struggles, into the snow beneath. The life of the Indian, Mr. Smith describes, as full of extremes. At one time he would be feasting in abundance; again he would be starving. There were certain seasons of war and successful hunting when all his energies, mental and physical, would be raised to their utmost tension. Again there would be a season of the utter listlessness and indolence, with absolutely nothing to interest the mind or occupy the body. Generally in the months of August and September the ears of corn were ripe for roasting. This was the Indians' season for Lent. He then partook of but little animal food. Hunting was with him a toil, not a pastime. Having gorged himself with roasted corn, he felt no disposition to shoulder his rifle and make long and tiresome marches through the forest, lugging home upon his shoulders the small game, or sending his wife and daughters far into the wilderness to bear upon their backs the heavy burdens of quarters of deer and bears. In what we called savage, as well as in civilized life, the departments of men's and women's work are quite distinctly defined. In American and European communities the men are not expected to cook the dinner, to sweep the rooms, to wash the dishes and make the beds. With the Indians, the men were not expected to bring the water, to skin the deer or the buffalo, or to bring home the venison. An Indian woman would have felt as much dishonored and mortified in seeing her lordly husband return from the chase with a deer upon his back, as an American woman would feel in having her husband habit- ually wash the dishes or sweep the rooms. The hunter might, in accordance with established etiquette, take an Indian pony with him and load him down with the game he had taken. During the season of lethargy the Indian hunter spends his time dosing in the sunshine, upon the grass, or upon the couch of skins and leaves in his wigwam. They had occasional dances, such as we have described, with the matrons and girls. Foot-ball was a favorite pastime with them. They also had a gambling game somewhat resembling dice, of which they were immoderately fond. Mr. Burnet, in his Notes, gives the following account of a game of foot- ball which the renowned chief Bu-kon-ge-he-las got up on the River Auglaise the entertain a party of white men who visited him. This Indian village was beautifully situated in the center of a large green and level plain. The game was arranged for the afternoon. The chief selected two young men to get a purse of trinkets made up, to be the reward of the successful party. That matter was soon accomplished, and the whole village, male and female, in their best attire, were on the lawn - which was a plain of four or five acres, thickly covered with blue grass. At each of the opposite extremes of this lawn two stakes were set up about six feet apart. The men played against the women; and, to countervail the superiority of their strength, it was a rule of the game that they were not to touch the ball with their hands on the penalty of forfeiting the purse. The females had the privilege of using their hands as well as their feet. They were allowed to pick up the ball and run and throw it as far as their strength and activity would permit. When one of the women or girls succeeded in get- ting the ball, the men were allowed to seize her, whirl her around, and, if necessary, throw her on the grass for the purpose of disengaging the ball, taking care not to touch it except with their feet. The contending parties arranged themselves in the center of the lawn; the men on one side, the women on the other. Each party faced the goal of its opponent. The side which succeeded in driving the ball through the stakes at the goal of its adversary, was proclaimed victor, and received the purse. All matters being thus arranged, the venerable chief came upon the lawn, and saying something in the Indian language, not understood by his guests, threw up the ball and retired. The contest then began. The parties were pretty equally matched as to numbers, there being about one hundred on each side. For a long time the victory appeared to be doubtful. The young girls were the most active of their party, and most frequently caught the ball. It was very amusing to see the struggle between them and the young men. It generally terminated in the prostration of the girl upon the grass, before the ball could be forced from her hand. The contest continued about an hour, with great animation and various prospects of success. It was finally decided in favor of the women. One athletic girl seized the ball, and triumphing over all the efforts to wrench it from her, rushed toward the goal and succeeded in throwing it through the stakes. Great was the exultation of the victors. Their countenances beamed with joy. It seemed to add greatly to the appreciation of their triumph, that it was gained in the presence of their distinguished white guests. One day Smith, seeing the women and young girls at work in the corn- field, took a how and joined them, working diligently, very much to their amusement, half an hour. One of the chiefs severly reprimanded him for the impropriety of his conduct, saying that it was inconsistent with the dignity of a warrior to descend to the drudgery of woman's work. "I hope for the future," he added, "you will demean yourself more properly, and remember that you are a member of a tribe of warriors, and have been adopted into a noble family." Hospitality has ever been one of the distinguishing traits of Indian character. Whenever a stranger enters a wigwam, food, the best the lodge affords, was immediately placed before him. And it was considered a great breach of politeness not to accept the refreshment. It was no excuse that one had just been eating to repletion. If it so happened that there were no food in the house, which not unfrequently was the fact, it was immediately mentioned, and was invariably accepted as an all-sufficient apology. On one occasion the chief, Tontleango, and Smith, were absent from the village on a distant hunting excursion. They had paddled, in a birch canoe, several miles up one of the numerous rivers in that vicinity. They had taken with them some choice stores, such as sugar and bear's oil, which were es- teemed great delicacies. Leaving stores in the canoe, which was moored on the banks of the stream, they proceeded about a mile into the forest, until they came to good hunting ground, where they built a comfortable camp and kindled their fire. The chief, leaving Smith to attend to sundry domestic labors, took his rifle and disappeared in the woods in search of game for supper. Shortly after his departure, a Wyandott hunter, who had been unsuccessful, came across the camp. He was hungry, faint and weary. Smith received him, as he supposed, with true Indian hospitality, feeding him abundantly with hominy and some venison, which he chanced to have on hand. The Wyandott, thus re- freshed, went on his way rejoicing. When Tontileango returned, Smith informed him of the visit of the stran- ger, and of his hospitable reception. The chief listened with much gravity to his report, and then said: "I suppose, of course, that you went to the canoe and brought up, for your guest, the sugar and bear's oil which we left there." "No, " Smith replied, "I never thought of that. The canoe was so far off that it would have been too much trouble." "Well, brother," the chief replied with much solemnity of manner, "you have not behaved like a warrior. But as you are young, and have been brought up among the white people, and consequently know no better, I can excuse you this time. But again to be remiss in the rites of hospitality, that you may avoid trouble. Never be caught again in such a little action. Great actions alone make great men." The power of the Indians of enduring long-continued fasting and fatigue, was extraordinary. Even the women, with heavy burdens upon their backs, would travel as fast and as far as any pack horse. In the Spring of the year, 1756, a large quantity of game was killed at a considerable distance from the village where Smith resided. The amount was so large, and the danger of its being devoured by wild beasts so great, that the whole community, in- cluding the women and the boys, turned out to bring it home. Smith took upon his shoulders three large pieces of buffalo meat. After bearing the heavy burden for several miles, he became utterly exhausted, and was compelled to throw down the load. An Indian woman, who was marching gaily along, under an equal burden, laughed heartily at his discomfiture, and added it to her own load. An Indian could not run, for a short distance, any swifter than an ath- letic white man. But the Indians were capable of sustaining the exertion of running for an incredible length of time. One of their renowned runners would frequently continue at a rapid pace for twelve or fourteen hours, even without taking any nourishment. Then, after a hasty meal, and a very brief season of repose, he would resume his course, apparently without any exhaus- tion. Smith found that he could never compete with the Indians in this re- spect. While Smith and the Chief Tontileago were encamped at some distance from the village, it was necessary for them to carry their game home on their shoulders. It was winter, and the ground was white with snow. There were three wild horses grazing near them, finding grass in abundance on a large treeless plain beneath the snow. It had been found impossible to catch the horses, and the chief suggested that they should run them down. "Smith, having but little relish for the undertaking, urged the impossi- bility of success. But Tontileago replied, that he had frequently run down bear, deer, elk and buffalo, and believed that, in the course of a day and night, he would run down any four-footed animal excpet wolf. Smith observed, that, although deer were swifter than horses for a short distance, yet, and he was confident that they would tire themselves to no purpose. The other insisted upon making the experiment at any rate; and at daylight, on a cold day in February, and on a hard snow several inches deep the race began. The two hunters stripped themselves to their moccasins and started at full speed. The horses were in very high order, and very wild, but contented themselves with running in a circle of six or seven miles in circumference, and would not abandon their usual grazing ground. "At ten o'clock Smith had dropped considerable astern, and before eleven Tontileago and the horses were out of sight, the Indian keeping close at their heels, and allowing them no time for rest. Smith, naked as he was, and glowing with exercise, threw himself upon the hard snow; and having cooled himself in this manner, he remained stationary until three o'clock in the evening, when the horses again came in view, their flanks smoking like a seething keetle, and Tontileago close behind them, running with undiminished speed. Smith being now perfectly fresh, struck in ahead of Tontileago, and compelled the horses to quicken their speed, while his Indian brother, from behind, encouraged him to do his utmost, after shouting 'Chako! chakoanough! (pull away, pull away my boy). "Had Tontileango thought of resting, and committed the chase to Smith alone, for some hours, and then in his return relieved him, they might have succeeded; but neglected this plan, they both continued the chase until dark, when, perceiving that the horses ran still with great vigor, they dispaired of success, and returned to the camp, having tasted nothing since morning, and one of them, at least, having run nearly one hundred miles. Tontileago was somewhat crestfallen at the result of the race, and grumbled not a little at their long wind; but Smith assured him that they had attemp- ted an impossibility, and he becam reconciled to their defeat."