SENECA COUNTY OHIO - HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS OF OHIO
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Historical Collections by Henry Howe LL.D.

SENECA COUNTY - Part 4

CAPTIVITY AND EXPERIENCES AMONG THE OHIO INDIANS
OF
COL. JAMES SMITH,
Between May, 1755 and April, 1759, as related by himself.

In the year 1854, was published at Sandusky, one volume of "A History of
Ohio," by James W. Taylor, a journalist of Sandusky. Only one of its two
designed volumes was issued. This comprised the period between the years
1650 and 1787 and therefore before Ohio itself existed.
One of its chapters is entitled "A Pilgrim of Ohio One Hundred Years ago."
That chapter embodies all that is essential in the personal narration of
Col. Smith and is here copied entire. It is highly attractive from its
simplicity of style and evident truthfulness in details.

It is our power, by transcribing from a Narrative of the Captivity of Col.
James Smith among the Indians, between May, 1755, and April, 1759, to
present a picture of the wilderness and its savage occupants, which,
bearing intrinsic evidence of faithful accuracy, is also corroborated by
the public and private character of the writer.
Col. James Smith was a native of Pennsylvania, and after his return from
Indian captivity, was entrusted, in 1736, with the command of a company of
riflemen. He trained his men in the Indian tactics and discipline, and
directed them to assume the dress of warriors and to paint their faces red
and black, so that in appearance they were hardly distinguishable from the
enemy. Some of his exploits in the defense of the Pennsylvania border are
less creditable to him than his services in the war of the revolution. He
lived until the year 1812, and is the author of a "Treatise on the Indian
mode of warfare." In Kentucky, where he spent the latter part of his life,
he was much respected and several times elected to the legislature.
The first edition of Smith's Journal was published in Lexington, Kentucky,
by John Bradford, in 1799. Samuel Drake, the Indian antiquarian and author,
accompanies its republication in 1851 by a tribute to Smith as "an
exemplary Christian and unwavering patriot."
CAPTURE OF SMITH
In the spring of 1755, James Smith, then eighteen years of age, was
captured by three Indians (two Delaware and one Canasatauga) about four or
five miles above Bedford, in Western Pennsylvania. He was immediately led
to the banks of the Allegheny river, opposite Fort DuQuesne, where he was
compelled to run the gauntlet between two long ranks of Indians, each
stationed about two or three rods apart. His treatment was not severe until
near the end of the lines, when he was felled by a blow from a stick or
tomahawk handle, and on attempting to rise, was blinded by sand thrown into
his eyes. The blows continued until he became insensible and when he
recovered his consciousness, he found himself within the fort, much bruised
and under the charge of a French physician.
EXULTATION OVER BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT.
While yet unrecovered from his wounds, Smith was a witness of the French
exultation and the Indian orgies over the disastrous defeat of Braddock. A
few days afterward, his Indian captors placed him in a canoe and ascended
the Allegheny river to an Indian town on the north side of the river, about
forty miles above Fort DuQuesne. Here they remained three weeks, when the
party proceeded to a village on the west branch of the Muskingum, about
twenty miles above the forks. This village called Tullihas, was inhabited
by Delawares, Caughnewagas and Mohicans. The soil between the Allegheny and
Muskingum rivers on the route here designated, is described as "chiefly
black oak and white oak land, which appeared generally to be good wheat
land, chiefly second and third rate, intermixed with some rich bottoms.
CEREMONY OF ADOPTION.
While remaining at Tullihas, Smith describes the manner of his adoption by
the Indians and other ceremonies, which we prefer to give in his own words:
"The day after my arrival at the aforesaid town, a number of Indians
collected about me, and one of them began to pull the hair out of my head.
He had some ashes on a piece of bark, in which he frequently dipped his
fingers in order to take a firmer hold, and so he went on, as if he had
been plucking a turkey, until he had all the hair clean out of my head,
except a small spot about three or four inches square on my crown. This
they cut off with a pair scissors, excepting three locks, which they
dressed up in their own mode. Two of these they wrapped round with a narrow
beaded garter, made by themselves for that purpose and the other they
plaited at full length and then stuck it full of silver brooches. After
this they bored my nose and ears, and fixed me off with earrings and
nose-jewels. Then they ordered me to strip off my clothes and put on a
breech-clout, which I did. They then painted my head, face and body in
various colors. They put a large belt of wampum on my neck and silver bands
on my hands and right arm; and so an old chief led me out on the street and
gave the alarm halloo, "coo-wigh," several times, repeated quick; and on
this, all that were in the town came running and stood round the old chief,
who held me by the hand in the midst. As I at that time knew nothing of
their mode of adoption, and had seen them put to death all they had taken
and as I never could find that they saved a man alive at Braddock's defeat,
I made no doubt that they were about putting me to death in some cruel
manner. The old chief holding me by the hand, made a long speech, very
loud, and when he had done he handed me to three young squaws, who led me
by the hand down the bank, into the river, until the water was up to our
middle. The squaws then made signs to me to plunge myself into the water,
but I did not understand them. I thought the result of the council was that
I should be drowned, and that these young ladies were to be the
executioners. They all three laid violent hold of me and I for some time
opposed them with all my might, which occasioned loud laughter by the
multitude that were on the bank of the river. At length one of the squaws
made out to speak a little English (for I believe they began to be afraid
of me) and said "No hurt you." On this I gave myself up to their ladyships,
who were as good at their word, for though they plunged me under water and
washed and rubbed me severely, yet I could not say they hurt me much.
These young women led me to the council house, where some of the tribe
were ready with new clothes for me. They gave me a new ruffled shirt, which
I put on; also, a pair of leggins done off with ribbons and beads,
porcupine quills and red hair; also, a tinsel-laced cappo. They again
painted my head and face with various colors, and tied a bunch of red
feathers to one of those locks they had left on the crown of my head, which
stood up five or six inches. They seated me on a bearskin and gave me a
pipe, tomahawk and polecat-skin pouch, which had been skinned
pocket-fashion and contained tobacco, killegenico or dry sumach leaves,
which they mix with their tobacco; also, punk, flint and steel. When I was
thus seated the Indians came in, dressed and painted in their grandest
manner. As they came in they took their seats, and for a considerable time
there was profound silence; everyone was smoking, but not a word spoken
among them. At length one of the chiefs made a speech, which was delivered
to me by an interpreter and was as follows: "My son, you are now flesh of
our flesh and bone of our bone. By the ceremony which was performed this
day, every drop of white blood was washed out of your veins; you are taken
into the Caughnewago nation and initiated into a warlike tribe; you are
adopted into a great family, and now, received with great seriousness and
solemnity in the room and place of a great man. After what has passed this
day, you are now one of us by an old strong law and custom. My son, you
have now nothing to fear -we are now under the same obligations to love,
support and defend you, that we are to love and defend one another;
therefore you are to consider yourself as one of our people." At this time
I did not believe this fine speech, especially that of the white blood
being washed out of me; but since that time I have found that there was
much sincerity in said speech; for, from that day, I never knew them to
make any distinction between me and themselves, in any respect whatever,
until I left them. If they had plenty of clothing, I had plenty; if we were
scarce, we all shared one fate.
After this ceremony was over I was introduced to my new kin, and told that
I was to attend a feast that evening, which I did. And as the custom was,
they gave me also a bowl and wooden spoon, which I carried with me to the
place, where there were a number of large brass kettles, full of boiled
venison and green corn. Everyone advanced with his bowl and spoon and had
his share given him. After this one of the chiefs made a short speech and
then we began to eat.
SMITH DESCRIBES THE WAR-DANCE.
The name of one of the chiefs of this town was Tecanyaterigto, alias
"Pluggy," and the other Asallecoa, alias "Mohawk Solomon." As Pluggy and
his party were to start the next day to war, to the frontiers of Virginia,
the next thing to be performed was the war-dance and their war-songs. At
their war-dance they had both vocal and instrumental music; they had a
short, hollow gum, closed at one end, with water in it, and parchment
stretched over the open end thereof, which they beat with one stick, and
made a sound nearly like that of a muffled drum. All of those who were
going on this expedition collected together and formed. An old Indian then
began to sing, and timed the music by beating on this drum, as the ancients
formerly timed their music by beating the tabor. On forward in concert, as
well-disciplined troops would march to the fife and drum. Each warrior had
a tomahawk, spear or war-mallet in his hand, and they all moved regularly
toward the east, or the way they intended to go to war. At length they all
stretched their tomahawks toward the Potomac, and giving a hideous shout or
yell, they wheeled quick about and danced in the same manner back. The next
was the war-song. In performing this only one sung at a time, in a moving
posture, with a tomahawk in his hand, while all the other warriors were
engaged in calling aloud. "He uh, he uh," which they constantly repeated
while the war-song was going on. When the warrior who was singing had ended
his song, he stuck a war-post with his tomahawk and with a loud voice told
what warlike exploits he had done and what he now intended to do, which
were answered by the other warriors with loud shouts of applause. Some who
had not before intended to go to war at this time, were so animated by this
performance that they took up the tomahawk and sung the war-song, which was
answered with shouts of joy, as they were then initiated into the present
marching company. The next morning this company all collected at one place,
with their heads and faces painted various colors, and packs upon their
backs; they marched off, all silent except the commander, who, in front
sung the traveling-song, which began in this manner: "Hoo
caughtainteheegana." Just as the rear passed the end of the town they began
to fire in their slow manner, from the front to the rear, which was
accompanied with shouts and yells from all quarters.
A COURTING-DANCE
This evening I was invited to another sort of dance, which was a kind of
promiscuous dance. The young men stood in one rank, and the young women in
another, about one rod apart, facing each other. The one that raised the
tune, or started the song, held a small gourd or dry-shell of a squash in
his hands, which contained beads or smalls tones, which rattled. When he
began to sing he timed the tune with his rattle; both men and women danced
and sung together, advancing toward each other, stooping until their heads
would be touching together, and then ceased from dancing with loud shouts,
and retreated and formed again, and so repeated the same thing over and
over for three or four hours without intermission. This exercise appeared
to me at first irrational and insipid; but i found that in singing their
tunes, "Ya ne no hoo wa ne," etc., like our "Fa sol la," and though they
have no such thing as jingling verse, yet they can intermix sentences with
their notes, and say what they please to each other, and carry on the tune
in concert. I found this was a kind of wooing or courting-dance, and as
they advanced stooping with their heads together, they could say what they
pleased in each other's ear, without disconcerting their rough music, and
the others, or those near, not hear what they said.
Smith describes an expedition about thirty or forty miles southwardly, to
a spot which he supposed to be between the Ohio, Muskingum and Scioto
rivers (Hocking river, near Athens), perhaps in Licking county. It was a
buffalo lick where the Indians killed several buffalo, and in their small
brass kettles made about half a bushel of salt. Here were clear, open
woods, and thin white-oak land, with several paths like wagon roads leading
to the lick.

-continued in part 5