Portage County, Ohio - Chapter with an unread heading (no. 2 of those read), 1885 (part 1 of 6)

Chapter with an unread heading (no. 2 of those read)

Bonjnniin ItnMiriu, and the **RiiMwln" Apiile-Other Seillew - lIoneBt John Fritoh - A N'otwl lliinler - Two Organi/ations - A " !- Iii.'*(rutt'<l " .iiistire - First Mills, .Stores. <»tc. - Coniln^; of tho nprmans - Fir«t ( hiirche^t and Schools - Fir>t Kirtli and Ivatli - Mocadore - SufBold Center - A Duplex Town, etc - 8tntMiMh wtn ITnilMwa, Kesources and OlBoers. CHAfTFU X X X IV. - WiNoiiAM Towssiiii .Mm 574 Thi! lU'cket Land t'Diiipany - The March Westward - Konie Ilarly s<'ttler< -<>rt;niiij!a- Uon and OHiccra - ChurchuMamI Preacher*' Initial SfMits or Intamt - Primitire EdaeatoT* - RuildJnf and Enterpriae - BasincM - Qraad Armj - Tmrnahip (MBeenHSOilia* ilea.

Biografhical Sketches

^gnaton, ( ien. Nelr^on, Aurora Towoauip.. F<i«ter, .lonntlian, Mantua TowiMblp...Mm Fow ler, Henjamin, Nelson Township^. Fuller, I.I', N'l-lson 'I'ownshlp.

The Northwest Territory Geographical Position

When the Korihwastem Teiritoiy ww oeded to the United Stfttee by Yiiginia Sn 1784, it embraced only the territory lying between the Ohio and the MiiaiflBtppi Riyen, and north to the nortiiem limita of the United Statee. It coincided with the area now embraced in the States of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisoonein, and that portion of Minnesota lying on the east side of the Missiaaippi River. The United States itself at that period extended no farther west than the Mississippi River ; but by the pozohase of Louisiana in 1803, the western boundary of the United States was extended to the Rocky Mountains and the Northern Pacific Ocean. The new territory thus added to the National domain, and subsequently opened to settlement, has been called the "New Northwest," in contradistiactioa £rom the old Northwestern Territory."

In comparison with the old Northwest this is a territory of vast magnitude. It includes au area of 1,887,850 square miles ; being greater in extent than the united areas of all the Middle and Southern States, inelndiDg Texas. Out of this magnifieent tenitory hare been erected elcTen aoTereign States and eight Territories, with an aggregate population, at the present time, of 18,000,000 inhabitants, or nearly one-third of the entire population of the United States.

Its lakes are fresh-water seas, and the larger rivers of the continent flow for a thonsand miles through its rioh alluvial valleys and farstretching prairiss, more acres of which are arable and productive of the highest percentage of the cereals than of any other area of like extent en the globe.

For the last twenty years the increase of population in the Northwe^^t has been about as three to one in any other portion of the United States.

Early Explorations Thb Itoktbwbbt Tbbbhobt

:)f latitude. The expedition resulted in his death and that of more than half his anny, the remainder of whom found their way to Cuba, thence to Spain, in a famished and demoralized condition. DeSoto founded no settlements, produced no results, and left no traces, unless it were that he awakened the hostility of the red man against the wliite man, and disheartened such as might desire to follow up the career of discovery for better purposes. The French nation were eager and ready to seize upon aajrnews from this eztemiTO domain, and were the fint to profit by DeSoto's defeat* Yet it was more than a oentury before any adventurer took advantage of these discoveries.

In 1616, four years before the pilgrims moored their bark on the wild New England shore,'* Le Garon, a French Franciscan, had pene* trated through the l^roquois and Wjrandota (Hurons) to the streams which run into Lake Huron ; and in 1634, two Jesuit missionaries founded the first mission among the lake tribes. It was just one hundred years from the discovery of the Mississippi by DeSoto (1541) until the Canadian envoys met the savage nations of the Northwest at the Falls of St. Mary, below the outlet of Lake Superior. This visit led to no permanent result ; yet it was not until 1669 that any of the adventurous fur traders attempted to spend a Winter in the frozen wilds about the great hikes, nor was it until 1660 that a station was established upon their borders by Mesnard, who perished in the woods a few months after. In 1665, Claude Allouez built the earliest lasting habitation of the white man among the Indians of the Northwest. In 1668, Claude Dablon and James Marquette founded the mission of Saolt Ste. Marie at the Falls of St. Mary, and two years afterward, Nicholas Perrot, as agent for M. Talon, Governor General of Oanada, explored Lake Illinois (Michigan) as fax south as the present City of Chicago, and invited the Indian nations to meet him at a grand council at Sault Ste. Marie the following Spring, where they were taken under the protecti<m of the king, and formal possession was taken of the Northwest. This same year Marquette established a mission at Point St. Ignatius, where was founded the did town of Michillimackinac. During M. Talon's explorations and Marquette's residence at St.

r Igpnatius, they learned of a great river away to the west, and fancied - as all others did then - that upon its fertile banks whole tribes of God's

* request of M. Talon, who earnestly de^sired to extend the domain of his king, and to asceitaiu whether the river tlowed into the Gulf of Mexico or the Pacific Ocean, Marquette with Joliet, as commander of the expedition, prepared for the andertaking.

ant Ftenoli Canadians, set out from Mackinaw on thoir daring Toyage of disGOYery. The Indians, who gathered to witness their departure, were astonished at the boldness of the undertaking, and endeavored to dissuade them from their purpose bj representing the tribes on the Ifississippi as exceedingly savage and cruel, and the river itself as foil of all sorts of frightful monsters ready to swallow them and their canoes together. But, nothing daunted by these terrific descriptions, Marquette told them he i was willing not only to encounter all the perils of the unknown region I they were about to explore, but to lay down his life in a cause in which the salvation of souls was involved ; and having prayed together they ^ separated. Coasting along the northern shore of Lake Michigan, the adventurers entered Green Bay, and passed thence up the Fox River and Lake Winnebago to a village of the Miamis and Kickapoos. Here Mar- . quette was delighted to find a beautiful cross planted in the middle of the f town, ornamented with white skins, red girdles and bows and arrows, which these good people had offered to the Great Manitou, or God, to thank him for the pity he had bestowed on them during the Winter in giving them an abundant chase.** Ihiswas the farthest outpost to^ which DaUon and Allones had extended their missionary labors the year previous. Here Marquette drank mineral waters and was instructed in the secret of a root which cures the bite of the venomous rattlesnake. . /' He assembled the ohiefii and old men of the village, and, pointing to Joliet, said : My friend is an envoy of France, to discover new coun- i - tries, and I am an ambassador from God to enlighten them with the truths ^ of the Gospel." Two Miami guides were here furnished to conduct them to the Wisconsin River, and they set out from the Indian village on the 10th of June, amidst a great crowd of natives who had assembled to witness their departure into a region where no white man had ever yet ventured. The guides, having conducted them across the portage, returned. The explorers launched their canoes upon the Wisconsin, which they descended to the Mississippi and proceeded down its unknown waters. What emotions must have swelled their breasts as they struck out into the broadening current and became conscious that they were now upon the bosom of the Father of Waters. The mystery was about to be lifted from the long-sought river. The scenery in that locality is beautiful, and on that delightful seventeenth of June, must have been clad in aU its primeval loveliness as it had been adorned by the hand of Nature. Drifting rapidly, it is said that the bold bluffs on ei^er ' hand ** reminded them of the castled shores of their own beautiful rivers of Franee." By-and-by, as they drifted along, great herds of buffalo ' appeared on the banks. On going to the heads of the valley they could see a oountiy of the greatest beauty and fertility, apparently destitute of the boat, and Marquette and Joliet followed the path till they discovered a village on the banks of a river, and two other villages on a hill, within a half league of the first, inhabited by Indians. They WMO received most hospitably by these natives, who had never before seen a white person. After remaining a few days they re-emb;u ked and descended the river to about latitude 33°, where they found a village of the Arkansas, and being satisfied that the river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico, turned their course up the river, and ascending the stream to the mouth of the Illinois, rowed up that stream to its source and procured guides from that point to the lakes. *' Nowhere on this journey," says Marquette, did we see such grounds, meadows, woods, stags, buffaloes, deer, wildcats, bustards, swans, ducks, parroquets, and even beavers, as on the Illinois River.** The parly, without loss or ii^tiry, reached Green Bay in September, and reported their discovery - one of the most important of the age, but of which no record was preserved save Marquette's, Joliet losing his by the upsetting of his canoe on his way to Quebec Afterward Marquette returned to the Illinois Indians by their request, and ministered to them until 1675. On tiie 18th of May, in that year, as he was passing the mouth of a stream - going with liis boatmen up Lake Michigan - he asked to land at its mouth and celebrate Mass. Leaving his men with the canoe, he retired a short distance and l)egan his devotions. As much time passed and he did not return, his men went in search of him, and found him upon his knees, dead. He had peacefully passed away while at prayer. He was buried at this spot. Charlevoix, who visited the place fifty years after, found the waters had retreated from the grave, leaving the beloved missionary to repose in peace. The river has since beeu called Marquette.

While Marquette and his companions were pursuing their labors in the West, two men, differing widely from him and each other, were preparing to follow in his footsteps and perfect thediiooveries so well begun by him. These were Robert de LaSalle and Louis Hennepin.

After LaSalle's return from the discovery of the Ohio River (see the narrative elsewhere), he established himself again among the French teading posts in Canada. Here he mused long upon the pet project of those ages - a short way to China and the East, and was busily planning an expedition up the great lakes, and so across the continent to the Pacific, when Marquette returned from the Mississippi. At once the vigorous mind o£ LaSalle received from his and his companions' stories the idea that by iol- loving the Qreat Biver northward, or by turning up some of the nameroos western tribatariee» tbe object could e&Bily be gained. He applied to Frontenac, Governor General of Canada, and laid before him the plao, dim but gigantic. Frontenac entered warmly into his plans, and saw that LaSallo's idea to connect the great lakes by a chain of forts with the Gulf of Mexico would bind the country so wonderfully together, give unmeasured power to France, and glor}' to himself, under whose admiuietiation he earnestly hoped all would be realized.

LaSalle now repaired to France, laid his plans before the King, who warmly approved of them, and made him a Ciievalier. He also received from all the noblemen the warmest wishes for his success. The Chevalier retaxned to Canada, and hnsilj entered upon hie woik. He at ooee rebuilt Fort Frontenao and conBtmeted the first ship to sail on these fresh-water seas. On the 7th of August, 1679, having been joined bj Hennepin, he began his voyage in the Griffin up Lake Erie. He passed over this lake, through the straits beyond, up Lake St. Olair and into Huron. In this lake they encountered heavy storms. They were some time at Michillimackinac, where LaSalle founded a fort, and passed on to Green Bay, the Bale des Puans of the French, where he found a large quantity of furs collected for him. He loaded the Griffin with these, and placing her under the care of a pilot and fourteen sailors, started her on her return voyage. The vessel was never afterward heard of. He remained about these parts until early in the Winter, when, hearin^^ nothing from the Griffin, he collected all the men - thirty working men and three monks - and started again upon his great undertaking.

By a short portage they passed to the Illinois or Kankakee, called by the Indians, Theakeke," t&o(/^, because of the tribes of Indians called by that name, commonly known as the Mahingans, dwelling there. The French pronouneed it JB^akikt^ which became corrupted to Kankakee. ^^Fdling down the said river by easy journeys, the better to obeerve the eoantiy,*' about the last of December they reaehed a village of the JUU nois Indians, oontaining some five hundred cabins, but at that moment no inhabitants. The Sieur de LaSalle being in want of some breadstuib, took advantage of the absence of the Indians to help himself to a suffieiency of maize, laxge quantities of which he found concealed in holes under the wigwams. This village was situated near the preeent village of Utica in LaSalle County, Illinois. The corn being securely stored, the voyagers again betook themselves to the stream, and toward evening, on the 4th day of January, 1680, they came into a lake wliich must have been the lake of Peoria. This was called by the Indians Pim-i-te-wx, that is, a place where there are many fat beasts. Here the natives were met with in large numbers, but they were gentle and kind, and having spent some time with them, LaSalle detenniiied to erect another fort in place, for he had heard rumors that some of the adjoinuig tribes were trying to disturb the good feeling which existed, and some of his men were disposed to complain, owing to the hardships and perils of the traveL He called this fort " Crevecocur " (broken-heart), a name expressive of the very natural sorrow and anxiety which the pretty certain loss of his ship, Griffin, and his consequent impoverishment, the danger of hostility on the part of the Indians, and of mutiny among his own men, might well cause him. His fears were not entirely groundless. At one time poison was placed in his food, but fortunately was discovered.

While building this fort, the Winter wore away, the prairies began to look green, and LaSalle, despairing of any rdnforoementi, oondnded to retain to Canada, laiae new meana and new men, and embark anew in the enterpriflo. For this puipooe he made Hennepin the leader of a party to explore the head waters of the Mieaisiippi, and he set out on his journey. This jonmey was aooomplished with tiie aid of a few poisons, and was snooessfully made, though over an almost unknown route, and in a bad season of the year. He safely reaohed Oanada, and set out again for the object of his search.

Hennepin and his party left Fort Crevecceuron the last of February, 1680. When LaSalle reached this place on his return expedition, he found the fort entirely deserted, and he was obliged to return again to Canada. He embarked the third time, and succeeded. Seven days after leaving the fort, Hennepin reached the Mississippi, and paddling up the icy stream as best he could, readied no higher than the Wisconsin River by the 11th of April. Here he and his followers were taken prisoners by a band of Northern Indians, who treated them with great kindness. Hennepin's comrades were Anthony Auguel and Michael Ako. On this voyage they found several beautiful lakes, and **saw someeharming prairies.** Their oaptois were the Isante or Sauteurs, Chippewas, a tribe of the Sioux nation, who took them up the river until about the first of May when they reaohed some falls, whieh Hennepin christened Falls of St. Anthony in honor of his patron saint Here they took the land, and tiaveling nearly two hundred miles to the northwest, brought them to their villages- Here they were kept about three months, were treated kindly by their captors, and at the end of that time, were met by a band of Frenchmen, headed by one Sieur de Luth, who, in pursuit of trade and game, had penetrated thus far by the route of Lake Superior ; and with these fellowcountrymen Hennepin and his companions were allowed to return to the borders of civilized life in November, 1680, just after LaSalle had returned to the wilderness on his second trip. Hennepin soon after went to France, where he published an account of his adventures. /

Tbb Nobihwxbt Tibbiiobt

The Mississippi was first discoTered by De Soto in April, 1541, in his vfdn endeavor to find gold and precious gems. In the following Spring, De Soto, weary with hope long deferred, and worn out with his wanderings, fell a victim to disease, and on the 21st of May, died. His followers, reduced by fati^^ue and disease to less than three hundred men, wandered about the countr}' nearly a year, in the vain endeavor to rescue themselves by land, and finally constructed seven small vessels, called brigantines, in which thej embarked, and desoMiding the rirer, supposing it -would lead them to the lea, in July they oame to the sea (Qulf of llexioo), and by September reached the Uand of Cuba*

Tbej were the first to seo the great outlet of the Mississiiipii butt being so weaiy and di80ouniged« made no attempt to ohdm the oountty, and hardly had an intelligent idea of what they had passed through.

To La Salle, the intrepid explorer, belongs the honor of giving the first aoeount of the months of the river. His great desire was to possess this entire country for his king, and in January, 1682, he and his band of es^lorers left the shores of Lake Michigan on their third attempt, crossed the Portage, passed down the Illinois River, and on the 6th of Februaiy reached the banks of the Mississippi.

On the 13th they commenced their downward course, which they - pursued with but one interruption, until upon the 6th of March they discovered the three great passages by which the river discharges its waters into the gulf. La Salle thus narrates the event :

We landed on the bank of the most western ch&onel, about three leagues (nine mUes) from its mouth. On the seventh, M. de La Salle went to leoonnoiter the shore of the neighboring sea, and M. de Tonti meanwhile examined the great middle ehanneL They found the main outleto beautiful, laige and deep* On the eighth, we reasoended the river, a little above its oonfluenoe with the sea, to find a dry place beyond the xeaeh of inundations. The elevation of the North Pole was hero about twenty-sevmi degrees. Here we prepared a column and a croes, and to the cclunm were affixed the arms of France with this inscription :

The whole party, under arms, chanted the Te Deum^ and then, after a salute and cries of " Vive le Jto^' the column was erected by M. de La Salle, who, standing near it, proclaimed in a loud voice the authority of the King of France. La Satle returned and laid the foundations of the Mississippi settlements in Illinois ; thence he proceeded to France, where another expedition was fitted out, of which he was commander, and in two succeeding voyages ftuled to find the outlet of the river by sailing along the shore of the gulf. On the third voyage he was killed, through the treachery of his followers, and the object of his expeditions was not accomplished until 1699, when D'Iberville, under the authority of the crown, discovered, on the second of March, by way of the sea, the mouth of the " Hidden River." This majestic stream was called by the natives JISi2&0iMAta," and by the Spaniards, ^^la Paliuade^** from the great number of trees about its mouth. After traTersiDg the aereral outlets, and satisfying himself as to its certainty, he erected a fort near its western outlet, and returned to France.

An avenue of trade was now opened out which was fnUjImproTed. In 1718, New Orleans was laid out and settled by some European colonists. In 1762, the colony was made oyer to Spain, to be regained by France under the consulate of Napoleon. In 1808, it was purchased by the United States for the sum of fifteen million dollars, and the territory of Louisiana and commerce of the Mississippi River came under the charge of the United States. Although I.a Salle's labors ended in defeat and death, he had not worked and suffered in vain. He had thrown open to France and the world an immense and most valuable country ; had established several ports, and laid the foundations of more than one settlement there. " Peoria, Kaskaskia and Cahokia, are to this day monuments of LaSalle's labors ; for, though he had founded neither of them (unless Peoria, which was built nearly upon the site of Fort Crevecoeur,) it was by those whom he led into the West that these places were peopled and civilized. He WMf if not the disooverer, the first settler of the Mississippi Valley, and as such deserres to be known and honored.**

The French early improved the opening made for them. Before the year 1698, the Rey. Father Gtoavier began a mission among the Illinois, and founded Kaskaskia. For some time this was merely a missionary station, where none but natives resided, it being one of three such villi^pes, the other two being Cahokia and Peoria. What is known of these missions is learned from a letter written by Father Gabriel Marest, dated ** Aux Cascaskias, autrement dit de Tlmmaculate Conception de la Sainte Vierge, le 9 Novembre, 1712." Soon after the founding of Kaskaskia, the missionary, Pinet, gathered a flock at Cahokia, while Peoria arose near the ruins of Fort Crevecoeur. This must have been about the year 1700. The post at Vincennes on the Oubache river, (pronounced WJl-bS, meaning summer cloud moving swffth/,^ was estal)li.slied in 1702, according to the best authorities.* It is altogether probable that on LaSalle's last trip he established the stations at Kaskaskia and Gahokia. In July, 1701, the foundations of Fort Ponchartiain were laid by De la Motte Cadillac on the Detioit River. These stationSt with those established further north, were the earliest attempts to occupy the Northwest Territory. At the same time efforts were being made to occupy the Southwest, which finally culminated in the settlement and founding of the City of New Orleans by a colony from England in 1718. This was mainly accomplished through the efforts of the famous Mississippi Company, established by the notorious John Law, who so quickly arose into prominence in France, and who with his scheme so quickly and so ignominiously passed away.

Fnm the time of the founding of these stations for fifty years the French nation were engrosBed with the settlement of the lower Mississippi, and the war with the Chickasaws, who had, in reyenge for repeated iiguries, out off the entire eolonj at Natches. Although the company did little for Lonisiana, as the entire West was then called, yet it opened the trade throngh the Mississippi Riyer, and started the raising of grains indigenons to that climate. Until the year 1750, but little is known of the settlements in the Northwest, as it was not until this time that the attention of the English was called to the ooonpation of this portion of the New World, which they then supposed they owned. Vivier, a missionary among the Illinois, writing from " Aux Illinois," six leagues from Fort Chartres, June 8, 1750, says: "We have here whites, negroes and Indians, to say nothing of cross-breeds. There are five French villages, and three villages of the natives, within a space of twenty-one leagues situated between the Mississippi and another river called the Karkadaid (Kaskaskias). In the five French villages, are perhaps, eleven hundred whites, three hundred blacks and some sixty red slaves or savages. The thxee Illinois towns do not eontsin more than eight hundred soak all told. Most of the French till the soil ; they raise wheat, cattle, pigs and horses, and liye like princes. Three times as much is produced as can he consumed; and great quantities of grain and flour are sent to New Orleans.** This city was now the seaport town of the Northwest, and saye in the extreme northern part, where only furs and copper ore were found, almost all the products of the country found their way to France ' by the month of the Father of Waters. In another letter, dated November 7, 1750, this same priest says: *'For fifteen leagues above the mouth of the Mississippi one sees no dwellings, the ground being too low to be habitable. Thence to New Orleans, the lauds are only partially occupied. New Orleans contains black, white and red, not more, I think, than twelve hundred persons. To this point come all the lumber, bricks, salt-beef, tallow,, tar, skins and bear's grease j aud above all, pork and floor from tiie niinois. These things eraato some commerce, as forty vessels and more have come hither this year. Above New Orleans, plantationa are again met with ; the most considerable is a colony of Germans, some ten leagues up the river. At Point Coupee, thirty-five leagues above the German settlement, is a fort. Along here, within five or six leagues, are not less than sixty habitations. Fifty leagues farther up is the Natchez post, where we have a garrison, who are kej>t prisoners through fear of the Chickasaws. Here and at Point Coupee, they raise excellent tobacco. Another hundred leagues brings us to the Arkansas* where we have also a fort and a garrison for the benefit of the river ^ traders. * * * From the Arkansas to the Illinois, nearly five hundred I leagues, thm is not a aettlament. There shonld be, hower, a fort at ' the Onbache (Ohio), the only path by which the English can reach the ^ If Issiasippi. In the Illinois oonntiy are nnmberleas mines, but no one to work them as they deserve." Fkther Marest, writing from the poet at Vincennes in 1812, makes the same observation. Vivier also says: **Some individuals dig lead near the surface and supply the Indians and Canada* Two Spaniards now here, who claim to be adepts, say that our mines are like those of Mexico, and that if we would dig deeper, we shonld find silver under the lead ; and at any rate the lead is excellent. There is also in this country, beyond doubt, copper ore, as fxom time to time laige pieces are found in the streams.

At the close of the year 1750, the French occupied, in addition to the lower Mississippi posts and those in Illinois, one at Du Quesne, one at the Maumee in the country of the Miamas, and one at Sandusky in what may be termed the Ohio Valley. In the northern part of the Northwest they had stations at St. Joseph's on the St. Joseph's of Lake Michigan, at Fort Ponohartrain (Detroit), at Michillimackanao or Massillimacanao, Fox River at Green Bay, and at Sault Ste. Marie. The fondest dreams of LaSalle were now fUly realised. The French alone were possessors of this vast realm, basing their claim on disooveiy and settlement. Another nation, however, was now taming its attention to this extensive country, and hearing of its wealth, began to lay plans for occnpjing it and for securing the great profits arising therefrom.

Discovery Of The Ohio

This " Beautiful " river was discovered by Robert Cavalier de La- Salle in 1660, four years before the discovery of the Mississippi by Joliet and Marquette.

While LaSalle was at his trading post on the St. Lawrence, he found leisure to study nine Indian dialeots, the chief of which was the Iroquois. He not only desired to fiioOitate his intereonree in trade, but lie longed to tnyel and ezploie the unknown regions of the West. An inotdent Mon oeenrred wbioh decided him to fit ont an exploring expedition.

While oonveinng with some Senegas, he learned of a river oalled the Ohio* which rose in their oountiy and flowed to the sea» bnt at snoh a distance that it required eight months to reaoh its mouth. -In this statement the Mississippi and its tributaries were considered as one stream. LaSalle belieying^asmostof the French at that period did, that the great rivers flowing west emptied into the Sea of California, was anxious to ' embark in the enterprise of discovering a route across the continent to ' the commerce of China and Japan.

He repaired at once to Quebec to obtain the approval of the Governor. His eloquent appeal prevailed. The Governor and the Intendant, Talon, issued letters patent authorizin£^ the enterprise, but made no provision to defray the expenses. At this juncture the seminary of St. Sulpioe decided to send out missionaries in connection with the expedition, and LaSalle ollbring to sell his improvements at LaOhino to raise money, the offer was aooepted by the Superior, and two thousand eight hnndred doUara were raised, widi which LaSalle pnrohased four canoes and the neoeesaiy supplies for the outfit.

On the 6th of July, 1669, the party, numbering twenly*four persons, embarked in seven canoes on the St. Lawrence ; two additional eanoes carried tlie Indian guides. In three days they were gliding over the bosom of Lake Ontario. Their guides conducted them directly to the Seneca village on the bank of the Genesee, in the vicinity of the present City of Rochester, New York. Here they expected to procure guides to oonduct them to the Ohio, but in tliis they were disappointed.

The Indians seemed unfriendly to the enterprise. LaSalle suspected that the Jesuits had prejudiced their minds against his plans. After waiting a month in the hope of gaining their object, they met an Indian from the Iroquois colony at the head of Lake Ontario, who assured ihem that they could there find guides, and offered to conduct them thence.

On their way they passed the mouth of tiie Niagara River, when they heard iar the fiirst time the distant thimder of the cataraet. Arriving among the Iroquois, they met with a friendly reoepiion, and learned from a Shawanee prisoner that they oould reaoh the Ohio in six weeks. Delighted with tite unexpected good fortune, they made ready to reaume their journey ; but just as they were about to start they heard of the arrival of two Frenchmen in a neighboring village. One of them proved to be Louie JoUet, afterwards iismous as an explorer in the West. He

The N0Bxhwe8T Xsbbteobt

"bad been sent by the Canadian Government to explore the copper mines ou Lake Superior, but had failed, and was on his way back to Quebec. He gave the missionaries a map of the country he had exploded in the lake region, together with an -cooimt of the eoocUtioii of the IndianB in that quarter. This induced the priests to detennine on leading the expeditiiMi and going to Lake Supeiior. LaSsUe warned them that the Jesaits were probably occupying that field,* and that they would meet with a cold reception. NevertiielesB they persisted in their pnipoee, and after wonhip on the lake ahoie, parted from LaSalle. On axriying at Lake Superior, they Ibnnd, as LaSalle had predicted, the Jesuit Fatherst liazquette and Dablon, occupying the field.

These zealous disciples of Loyola informed them that they wanted BO anistance from St. Sulpice, nor from those who made him their patron saint ; and thus repulsed, they returned to Montreal the following June withoiit having made a single discovery or converted a single Indian.

After parting with the priests, LaSalle went to the chief Iroquois village at Onondaga, where he obtained guides, and passing thence to a tributary of the Ohio south of Lake Erie, he descended the latter as far as the falls at Louisville. Thus was the Ohio discovered by LaSallci the persevering a,nd successful French explorer of the West, in 1669.

The account of the latter part of his journey is found in an anonymous paper, which purports to have been taken £rom the lips of LaSalle himself during a subsequent yisit to Paris. In a letter written to CSount EVontenac in 1667, shortly after the discovery, he himself says that he disooTcied the Ohio and descended it to the &lls. This was regarded ss an indisputable tut by the French authorities, who claimed the Ohio Valley upon another ground. When Washington was sent by the colony of Virginia in 1768, to demand of Gordeur de St. Pierre why the French had built a fort on the Monongahelft, the haughty commandant at Quebec replied : *' We claim the country on the Ohio by virtue of the discoveries of LaSalle, and will not give it up to the English. Our orders are to make prisoners of every Englishman found trading in the Ohio Valley."

English Explorations And Settlements

When the new year of 1750 broke in upon the Father of Waters snd the Great Northwest, all was still wild save at the French posts already described. In 1749, when the English first began to think seriously about sending men into the West, the greater portion of the Stsiss of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota were yet under the dominion of the red men. The English knew, however, pretty conclusively of the nature of the wealth of these wilds. As early as 1710, Governor Spots wood, of Virginia, had commenced movements to secure the country west of the Alleghenies to the English crown. In Pennsylvania, Governor Keith and James Logan, secretary of the province, from 1719 to 1731, represented to the powers of England the necessity of securing the Western lauds. Nothing was done, however, by that power save to take some diplomatio steps to secure the claims of Britain to tius unei^Ioied wUdemew.

England had horn the ontset elaimed from the Atla&tio to the Pacific, on the ground that the discoTeiy of the seaooast and its poaaeaBion waaa diecoTBiyandpoaaeaBion of the oomiti^, and, aa la veil known, her gianta to the oolonies extended firom aea to aea." This waa not all her claim. She had purchased ficom the Indian tribes large tracts of land. This lat> ter was also a strong argument. As early as 1684, Lord H oward, Govamor of Virginia, held a treaty with the six nations. These were the great Northern Confederacy, and comprised at first the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas. Afterward the Tuscaroras were taken into the confederacy, and it became known as the Six Nations.. They came under the protection of the mother country, and again in. 1701, they repeated the agreement, and in September, 1726, a formal deed was drawn up and signed by the chiefs. The validity of this claim has often been disputed, l)ut never successfully. In 1744, a purchase was made at Lancaster, Pennsylvania, of certain lands within the " Colony of Virginia," for which the Indiana received X200 in gold and a like anm in goods, with a promiae that, aa settlements inoreaaed, more ahonld bepaid. - The Commiaaionera team Viiginia were Colonel Thomaa Lee and Colonel Wmiam Bererly. As aettlementa extended, the promiae of more pay waa called to mind, and Mr. Coniad Weiaer waa.aent acroaa the mountaina with ^leaents to appease the asTagee. Col. Lee, and some Viiginians accompar nied him with the intention of aonnding the Indians upon their feelings r^^ding the English. They were not satisfied with their treatment, and plainly told the Commissioners why. The English did not desire the cultivation of the country, but the monopoly of the Indian trade. In 1748, the Ohio Company was formed, and petitioned the king for a grant of land beyond the Alleghenies. This was granted, and the government of Virginia was ordered to grant to thein a half million acres, two hundred thousand of which were to be located at once. Upon the 12th of June, 1749, 800,000 acres from the line of Canada north and west was made to the Loyal Company, and on the 29th of October, 1751, 100,000 acres were given to the Greenbriar Company. All tiiia time Hie F^neh were not idle. They aaw that, should the Britiah gain a foothold in the Waat, eipecially upon the Ohio, they might not only prevent the Frendi aettliug upon it, but in time would come to the lower posts and so gain ^1 possession of the whole country. Upon the 10th of May, 1747, Vaudreuil, Governor of Canada and the French possessions, well knowing the consequences that must arise from allowing the English to build tradiug posts in the N'orthwest, sdxed some of their frontier posts, and to further secure the olalm of the Fkrench to the West, he, in 1749, sent Louis Cel* eron with a party of soldiers to plant along the Ohio River, in the mounds and at the mouths of its principal tributaries, plates of lead, on which ^ were insoribed the oUums of Franoe. These were heard of in 1752, and within the memory of residents now living i^ong the " C>7o,'* as the beautiful river was ealled by the French. One of these plates vr^A found with the inscription partly defaced. It bears date August 16, 1749, and a copy of the inscription with particular account of the discOTeiy of the plate, was sent by DcWitt Clinton to tlie American Antiquarian Society, among whose journals it may now be found.* These measures did not, however, deter the English from going on with their explorations, and though neither party resorted to arms, yet the conilict was gathering, and it was only a question of time when the stonu would burst upon the frontier settlements. In 1750, Christopher Gi.st was sent by the Ohio Company to examine it^ lands. He wenl, to a village of the Twigtwees, on the Miami, about one hundred and fifty miles above its mouth. He afterward spoke of it as very populous. From there he went down the Ohio River nearly to the falls at thd present City of Louisville, and in November he commenced a survey of the Company's lands. During the Winter, Qeneral Andrew Lewis performed a similar work for the Greenbriar Company. Meanwhile the French were busy in preparing their forts for defense, and in opening roads, and also sent a small party of soldiers to keep the Ohio dear. This party, having heard of the English post on the Miami River, early in 1652, assisted by the Ottawas and Chippewas, attacked it, and, after a severe battle, in which fourteen of the natives were killed and others wounded, captured the garrison. (^They were probably garrisoned in a block house). The traders were carried away to Canada, and one account says several were burned. This fort or post was called by the English Pickawillany. A memorial of the king's ministers refers to it as Pickawillanes, in the center of the territory between the Oliiu auil the Waljash. The name is probably some variation of Pickaway or Picqua in 17 To, written by Rev. David Jones Pickaweke."

This was the fint blood shed between fhe Frencb and Eng^h, and ooeoxred near the pieaentCilyof Piqua, Ohio, or at least at a point about forty-eeren miles north of Dajrton. £ach nation became now more intei^ ested in the progress of events in the Northwest. The English detep* mined to purchase from the Indians a title to the lands they wished to occupy, and Messrs. Fry (afterward Commander-in-chief over Washii^* ton at the commencement of the French War of 1775-1768), Lomax and Patten were sent in the Spring of 1752 to hold a conference with the natives at Logstown to learn what they objected to in the treaty of Lancaster already noticed, and to settle all difiiculties. Ou the 9th of Jime, these Clommissioners met the red men at Logstown, a little village on the north bank of the Ohio, about seventeen miles below the site of Pittsburgh. Here had been a trading point for many years, but it was abandoned by the Indians in 1750. At first the Indians declined to recognize the treaty of Lancaster^ bnl^ the Commisstonen taking aade Montour, the interpreter, who was a son of the £unous CSatharine Montonr, and a ehief among the six nations, indueed him to use his influence in their fimir. This he did, and npon the 18th of June they all united in signing a deed, oonfirming the Lanoaster treaty in its fnU extent, consenting to a settlement of the southeast 4^ the Ohio, and guaranteeing that it should not be disturbed by them. These were the means used to obtain theflisfc tnaty with the Indians in the Ohio Valley.

Meanwhile the powers beyond the sea were trying to out-manoBaTxe- \ e&ch other, and were professing to be at peace. The English generally outwitted the Indians, and failed in many instances to fulfill their contracts. They thereby gained the ill-will of the red men, and further | increased the feeling by failing to provide them with arms and ammunition. Said an old chief, at Easton, in 1758: " The Indians on the Ohio ' left you because of your own fault. When we heard the French were ' coming, we a^ked you for help and arms, but we did not get them. The Firench came, they treated us kindly, and gained our affsctions. The > Qomnor of Yiiginia settled on our lands £Dr his own benefit, and, when . we wanted help, forsook us.'*'/

At the beginning of 1058, the English thought they hsd secured by title the lands in the West, but the French had quietly gathered cannon and military stores to be in readiness for the- expected blow. The English made other attempts to ratify these existing treaties, but not until the Summer could the Indians be gathered together to discuss the plans of the French. They had sent messages to the French, warning them away ; but they replied that they intended to complete the chain of forts already begun, and would not abandon the field.

The Northwest Tebritoey

fng the positions and pniposes of the French, Qovemor Dinwiddie of Virginia determined to send to them another messenger and learn from them, if possible, their intentions. For this purpose he selected a young man, a snrvc jor, who, at the early age of nineteen, had received the rank of major, and who was thoroughly posted regarding? frontier life. This personage was no other than tlie illustrious G^ige Washington, wlio then held considerable interest in Western lands. He was at this time just twenty-two years of age. Taking Gist as his guide, the two, accompanied by four servitors, set out on their perilous march. They left Will's Creek on the 10th of November, 1753, and on the 22d reached the Monongahela, about ten miles above the fork. From there they went to Logstown, where Washington had a long conference with the chiefs of the Six Nations. From them he learned the condition of the French, and also heard of their determhiation not to oome down the river till the fol^ lowing Spring. The Indians were non-oomi^ittal, as they were afraid to torn either way, and, as £sr as they could, desired -to remaiii neutral. Washington, finding nothing oonld be done with them, went on to Venango, an old Indian town at the mouth of French Greek. Here the French had a fort, called Fort Machault. Through the rum and flattery of the French, he nearly lost all his Indian followers. Finding nothing of importance here, he pursued his way amid great privations, and on the 11th of December reached the fort at the head of French Creek. Here he delivered Governor Dinwiddie's letter, received his answer, took his observations, and on the IGth sot out upon his return journey with no one but Gist, his guide, and a few Indians who still remained true to him, notwithstanding the endeavors of the French to retain them. Their homeward journey was one of great peril and suffering from the cold, yet they reached home in safety on the Glh of January, IT VL

From the letter of St. Pierre, commander of the French fort, sent by Washington to Governor Dinwiddie, it was learned that the French would not give up without a struggle. Active preparations were at once made in all the English oolonies for the coming conflict, while the French finished the fort at Venaugo and strengthened their lines of fortifications, and gathered their forces to be in readiness.

The Old Dominion was all alive. Virginia was the center of great activities; volunteers were called for, and from all the neighboring colonies men rallied to the conflict, and everywhere along the Potomac men were enlisting under the Governor's proclamation - which promised two hundred thousand acres on the Ohio. Along this river they were gathering as for as Will's Creek, and far beyond this point, whither Trent had oome for assistance for his little band of forty-one men, who were river rolled hy the Allegheny hillsides, swollen by the melting snows of Spring and the April showers. The leaves were appearing ; a few Indian scouts were seen, but no enemy seemed near at hand ; and all was so quiet, that Frazier, an old Indian scout and trader, who had been left by Trent in command, ventured to his home at the mouth of Turtle Creek, ten miles up tlie Mononc^ahela. Rut, though all was so quiet in that wilderness, keen eyes liad s(>en the low intrenchraent rising at the fork, and switt feet had borne the news of it up the river ; and upon the morning of the 17th of April, Ensign Ward, who then had charge of it, saw npon the Allegheny a sight that made his heart sink - sixty batteaux and three hundred canoes filled with men, and laden deep with cannon and gtores. * - * That evming he supped with his captor, ContrecoBur, and the next day he was bowed off by the' Frenchman, and with his men and tools, marched up the Monongahela.**

The French and Indian war had began. The treaty of Aiz la Ch^>elle, in 1748, had left the .boundaries between the French and English possessions unsettled, aud the events already narrated show the French were determined to hokl tlie country watered by tiie Mississippi and its tributaries ; while the English laid claims to the countxy by virtne * of the discoveries of the Cabots, and claimed all the country from Newfoundland to Florida, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The first decisive blow had now been struck, and the first attempt of the English, through the Ohio Company, to occupy these lands, had resulted disiistrously to them. The French and Indians immediately completed the fortifications begun at the Fork, which they had so easily captured, and when completed gave to the fort the name of DuQuesne. Washington Wds ai Will's Creek when the news of the capture of the fort arrived. He at once departed to recapture it. On his way he entrenched himself at a place called the Meadows,** where he erected a fort called by him Fort Necesrity. From there he surprised and captured a force of FVench and Indians marching against him, but was soon after attacked in bis fort by a much superior force, and was obliged to yield on the morning of July 4th. He was allowed to return to Vixginia.

The English Government immediately planned four campaigns ; one against Fort DuQuesne; one against Nova Sootaa; one against Fort NiagaiBy and one against Crown Point. These occurred during 1755-6, and wore not successful in driving the French from their possessions. The evj>e(lition a<>'ainst Fort DuQuesne was led by the famous General BiaddociL, who, refusing to listen to the advice of Washington and those

Acquainted with Indian warfare, siifiPered saeh an inglonoOB defeat. This occurred on the morning of July 9tb, and is generally known as the battle of MfMumgahela, or Braddook*8 Defeat/' The war continaed with various vicissitudes through the years 17-^0-7 ; when, at the commence-* ment of 1758, in accordance with the plans of William Pitt, then Secretary of State, afterwards Lord Chatham, active preparations were made to carry on the war. Three expeditious were planned for this year : one, under General Amherst, against Louisburg ; another, under Abercrombie, against Fort Ticonderoga ; and a third, under General Forbes, against Fort DuQuesue. On the 2Gth of July, Louisburg surrendered after a desperate resistance of more than forty days, and the eastern part of the Canadian pocaoomons &11 into the handa oi the Britiah. Abereiombia captored Fort Frontenao, and when the expedition against Fort DaQaeane, of whioh Washington had the active oonunand, amved there, it Mraa found in flames and deserted. The English at onee took poasesaiont ittbuilt the fort, and in honor of their iUoatrioua statesman, changed tho name to Fort Pitt.

The great object of the campaign of 1759, was the reduction of Canada. General Wolfe was to lay siege to Quebec ; Amherst was to nduce Ticonderoga and Crown Point, and General Prideaux was to capture Niagara. This latter place was taken in July, but the gallant - Prideaux lost his life in the attempt. Amherst captured Ticonderoga and Crown Point without a blow ; and Wolfe, after making the memorable ascent to the Plains of Abrsiham, on September 13th, defeated Montcahu, and on the 18th, the city capitulated. In this engagement Montcolm and Wolfe both lost their lives. De Levi, Montcalm*s successor, marched to Sillery, three miles above the city, with the purpose of defeating the English, and there, on the 28th of the following April, was fought one of the bloodiest batdes of the French and Indian War. It resnlted in the defeat of the Fkench, and the fall of the Citj of HontreaL The GoTemor signed a capitulation by which the whole of Canada waa enrrendered to the Eng^h. This practically concluded the war, but it waa not until 1763 that the treaties of peace between Franceand England were signed. This was done on the 10th of February of that year, and under its provisions all the country east of the Mississippi and north of the Iberville River, in Louisiana, were ceded to England. At the same time Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain.

On the 13th of September, 1760, Maior Robert Rogers was sent from Montreal tu take charge of Detroit, the only remaining French post in the territory. He arrived there on the llHh of November, and summoned the place to sui'render. At Hist the commander of the post, Beletre, refused, but ou the 2i^th, hearing of the continued defeat of the

French arms, surrendered. Rogers remained there until December 23d under the personal protection of the celebrated chief, Pontiac, to whom, no doubt, he owed his safety. Poiitiac had come here to incjuire the purposes of the English in taking possession of the countfy. He was -Mured that they came simply to trade with the natiyes, and did not desire their eonn^. This answer conciliated the savages, and did much a^'^c to insure the safety of Bogeis and his party daring their stay, and while ; , on their journey home.

Sogers set ont for Fort Pitt on December 28, and was just one month on the way. His route was from Detroit to Maumee, thence across the present State of Ohio directly to the fort. This was the common trail of the Indians in their journeys from Sandusky to the fork of the Ohio. It went from Fort Sandusky, where Sandusky City now is, crossed the Huron river, then called Bald Eaf^le Creek, to " Mohickon John's Town" on Mohickon Creek, the northern branch of White Woman's River, and thence crossed to Beaver's Town, a Delaware town on what is now Sandy Creek. At Beaver's Town were probably one hundred and fifty warriors, and not less than three thousand acres of cleared land. From tliere the track went up Sandy Creek to and across Big Beaver, and up the Ohio to Logstown, thence on to the fork.

The Northwest Territory was now entirely nnder the English rolCb / Kew settlements began to be rapidly made, and the promise of a large - tmde was speedily manifested. Hsd the British carried out their promises with the natiTes none of those savage butcheries would have been pezpetiated* and the oountiy would have been spared their reoitsL

The renowned chief, Pontiac, was one of the leading spirits in these atrocities. We will now pause in our narratiye, and notice the leading events in his life. The earliest authentic information regarding this noted Indian chief is learned from Ml account of an Indian trader named Alexander Henry, who, in the Spring of 1761, penetrated his domains as far as Missilliraacnac. Pontiac was then a great friend of the Frenoli, but a bitter foe of the English, whom he considered as encroaching on his hunting grounds. Ht nry was obliged to disguise himself as a Canadian to insure .safety, but was discovered by Pontiac, who bitterly reproached him and tho English for their attempted subjugation of the West. Ho declared that no treaty had been made with them ; no presents sent them, and that he would resent any possession of the West by that nation. He was at the time about fifty years of age, tall and dignified, and was dvll and military ruler of the Ottawas, Ojibwas and Pottawatamies.

The Indians, from Lake Michigan to the borders of North Carolina, were united in this feeling, and at the tune of the treal^ of Paris, ratified Febroaiy 10» 1768, a general conspiracy was formed to fiill suddenly upon fhe frontier British posts, and with one blow strike OYeiy man dead. Pontiac was the marked leader in all this, and was the commander of the Chippewas, Ottawas, Wyandots, Miamis, Shawanese, Ddawares and Mingoes, who had, for the time, laid aside their local qnarrela to unite in this enterprise.

The blow came, as near as can now be asoertiuned, on May 7, 176ft» Kinc British posts fell, and the Indians drank, soooped up in the hollow of joined hands," the blood of many a Briton.

Pontiac*s immediate field of action was the garrison at Detroit. Here, however, the plans were fru?;tr;itr(l ])y nn Indian woman disclosing the plot the evening previous to his arrival. IC\ ei vthing was carried out, however, according to Pontiac's plans until the moment of action, wlien Major Gladwyn, the commander of the post, stepping to one of the Indian chiefs, suddenly drew aside his blanket and disclosed the concealed musket. Pontiac, though a brave man, turned pale and trembled. He saw his plan was known, and that the garrison were prepared. He endeavored to exculpate himself from any such intentions ; but the guilt was evident, and he and his followers were dismissed with a seme xeprimand, and warned never to again enter the walls of the post.

Pontiac at once laid siege to the fort, and until the treaty of peace between the British and the Western Indians, concluded in Augnst, 1764, oontinned to harass and benege the fortress. He organised a regular commissariat department, issued bills of credit written out on bark* which, to his credit, it may be stated, were punctually redeemed. At the conclusion of the treaty, in wliioh it seems he took no part, he went further south, living many yeass among the Illinois.

He had given up all hope of saving his country and race. After a time he endeavored to unite tlio Tlliiiois tribe and those about St. Louis in a war with the whiles. His efforts were fruitless, and only ended in a quarrel between himself and some Kaskaskia Indians, one of whom soon afterwards killed him. His death was, however, avenged by the northern Indians, who nearly exterminated the Illinois in the wars which followed.

Had it not been for tlie treachery of a few of his followers, his plan for the extermination of the whites, a masterly one, would undoubtedly have been carried out.

It was in the Spring of the year following Rogers* visit that Alexander Henry went to Missillimaonao, and everywhere found the strongest feelings against the English, who had not carried out their promises, and were doing nothing to conciliate the natives. Here he met the chief, Pontiac, who, after .conveying to him in a speech the idea that their French father would awake soon and utterly destroy his enemies, said: M Englishman, although you have conquered the French, you have not yet conquered us ! We are not your slaves ! These lakes, these woods, these monntaiiw, were left us by our ancestors. They are our inheritance, and m will part with tihem to none. Your nation supposes that we, like' the white people, can not live without bread and pork and beet But yon ought to know that He, the Great Spirit and Master of liife, has provided lood for UB apon these broad lakes and in these mountains.**

He then spoke of the fsot that no treaty had been made with them, no presents sent them, and that he and his people were yet for war. Such were the feelinge of Northwestern Indians immediately aftw the English took possession of their country. These feelings were no doubt enoomaged by the Canadians and French, who hoped that yet the French arms might prevail. The treaty of Paris, however, gave to the Knq-lish the right to this vast domain, and active preparations were going on to occupy it and enjoy its trade and emoluments.

Ill 1702, France, by a secret treaty, ceded Louisiana to Spain, to prevent it falling into the hands of the English, who were becoming masters of the eutii-e West. The next year the treaty of Paris, signed at Fontainbleau, gave to the English the domain of the country in question. Twenty years after, by the treaty of peace between the United States and England, that part of Canada lying south and west of the Great Lakes, eompfehending a large territoxy which b the subjeet of these fiketehes, was acknowledged to be a portion of the United States ; and twenty yean still later, in 1808, Louisiana was oeded by Spain back to Ftance, and by France sold to the United States.

In the half oentuiy, from the building of the Fort of CrevecoBur by LaSalle, in 1680, up to the erection of Fort Chartres, many French ae^ tiements had been made in that quarter. These have already been noticed, beino: those at St. Vincent (Vincennes), Kohokia or Cahokia, Kaskaskia and Prairie du Rocher, on the American Bottom, a large tract of rich alluvial soil in Illinois, oa the Mississippi, opposite the site of St. Louis.

By the treaty of Paris, the rcc^ions east of the Mississippi, including all tiiese and other towns of the Nortliwest, were given over to England; but they do not apptjar to liave been taken possession of until 17»]5, when Captain Stirling, in the name of the Majesty of England, established himself at Fort Chartres bearing with him the proclamation of General Gage, dated December 80, 1764, which promised xeligious freedom to all Gath> olies who worshiped liere, and a right to lesre the country with their ellects if they wished, or to remain with the privileges of Englishmen. It was shortly after the ooeupancy of the West by the British that the war with Pontiao opened. It is already noticed in the sketch of that duefkain. By it many a Briton lost his life, and many a ikontier settle* ment In its Infiuioy oetsed to exltt. This was not ended until tiM year 1764, when, fiuling to eaptnre Detroit, Niagara and Fort Pitt, his oonfedeiaey became disheartened, and, receiving no aid from the French, Pontiac abandoned the enterprise and departed to the lllincris, among whom he afterward lost his life.

As soon as these difficulties were definitely settled, settlers began sapidly to survey the conntry and prepare for occupation. During the jrear 1770, a number of persons from Virginia and other British provinces explored and marked out nearly all the valuable lands on the Monongaihela and along the banks of the Ohio as far as the Little Kanawha. This was followed by another exploring expedition, in which George Washing- I ton was a party. The latter, accompanied by Dr. Craik, Capt. Crawford I and others, on the 20th of Octoher, 1770, descended the Ohio from Pittsburgh to the mouth of the Kanawha ; ascended that stream about fourteen miles, marked out several large tracts of land, shot several buffalo, which, were then abundant iu the Ohio Valley, and returned to the fort.

Pittsburgh was at this time a trading post, about which was clustered a TiQage of some twenty houses, inhabited by Indian traders. This same year, Capt. Pittmanviated Kaslcaslda and ite neighboring villages. He found there about sixty-five resident &miUes, and at Caholda only forty-fivedwellings. At Fort Chartres was another small settlement, and at Detroit the garrison were quite prosperous and strong. For a year or two settlers continued to locate near some of these posts, generally Fort Pitt or Detroit, owing to the fears of the Indians, who still maintained some feelings of hatred to the English. The trade from the posts was quite good, and from those in Illinois large quantities of pork and flour found their way to the New Orleans market. At this time the policy of the British Government was strongly opposed to the extension of the colonies west. In 1763, the King of England forbade, by royal proclamation, his colonial subjects from making a settlement beyond the sources of the rivers which fall into the Atlantic Ocean. At the instance of the Board of Tnide, measures were taken to prevent the settlement without the limits prescribed, and to retain the commerce within easy teach of Great Britain.

The commander-in-chief of the king's forces wrote in 1769 : " In the eourse ui a few years necessity will compel the colonisto, should they extend their settlemente west, to provide manufietctures of some kind for themselves, and when all connection upheld by commerce with the mother country ceases, an mdependeney in their government will soon foUow.**

In accordance with this policy. Gov. Gage issued a proclamation inl772, commanding the inhal it t ts of Vincennes to abandon their settlemente and Join some of the £astem English colonies. To this they

Thb N0Bthwe8T Tbrbitoby

objeoted, giying good reasons therefor^ and wen allowed to lemain. The strong opposition to tbis policy of Great Britain led to its ehai^e, and to aneh a eoune aa to gain the attaehment of fhe Frenoh population. In Deeember, 1778, influential citizens of Qnebeo petitioned the king for an extension of the boundary lines of that province, which was granted, and Parliament passed an act on June 2, 1774, extending the boundary bo as to inolnde the territory lying within the present States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan.

In consequence of the liberal policy pursued by the British Government toward the French settlers in the West, they were disposed to favor that nation in the war which soon followed with the colonies ; but the early alliance between France and America soon brought them to the side of the war for independence.

lu 1774, Gov. Dunmore, of Virginia, began to encourage emigration to the Western lands. He appointed magistrates at Fort Pitt under the pretenao tliat the fiirt was nnder the government of thait ooounonwealtli. One of these jnstioes, John Connelly, who possessed a tiaot of land in the Ohio Valley, gathered a Ibroe of men and garrisoned the fort, ealling it Fort Dnnnmo. This and other parties were formed to select sites for settlements, and often came in conflietwith the Indians, who yet claimed portions of the valley, and several battles followed. These ended in the funoQs battle of Kanawha in July, where the Indians were defeated and driven across the Ohio.

During the years 1775 and 1776, by the operations of land companies and the perseveranceof individuals, several settlements were firmly established between the Alleghanies and the Ohio River, and western laud speculators were busy in Illinois and on the Wabash. At a council held in Kaskaskia on July 5, 1773, afl association of English traders, calling themselves the " Illinois Land Company," obtained from ten chiefs of the Ka^-kaskia, Cahokia and Peoria tribes two large tracts of land lying on the east side of the Mississippi River south of the Illinois. In 1775, a merchant from the Illinois Country, named Viviat, came to Post Vincennea as the agent the association called the ** Wabash Land Company.'* On the 8th of October he obtained from eleven Piankeshaw chiefe, a deed for 87.497,600 acrea of land. This deed was signed by the grantors^ attested by a nnmber of the inhabitants of Vincennes, and afterward recorded in the office of a notary paUio at in*- This and other land companies had eirteiisrre schemes for the colonization of the West ; but all were frustrated by the breaking ont of the Revolution. On the 20th of April, 17S0, the two companies named consolidated under the name of the ^ United Illinois and Wabash Land Company." Thciy afterward made

The Hobthwbst Teb&1Xor7

When the War of the BeTolntion commenoed, Kentncky was an iinor>- ganized oountiy, though there were several settlements within her borders.

*^ Kaskaskia contained 80 houses, and nearly 1,000 white and black inhabitants - the whites being a little the more numerous. Cahokia eontains 50 houses and 300 white inhabitants, and 80 negroes. There were east of the Mississippi River, about the year 1771 " - when these observations were made - dOO white men capable of bearing arms, and 230 negroes."

From 1775 until the expedition of Clark, nothing is recorded and nothing known of these settlements, save what is contained in a report made by a committee to Congress in June, 1778. From it the following extract is made :

**Near the mouth of the River Kaskaskia, there is a villi^e which appears to have contained nearly eighty families from the beginning of tlie late revolution. There are twelve families in a small village at la Prairie du Roohers, and nesr fifty funilies at the Kahokia Village. There are also lour or five &milies at Fort Chartres and St. Philips, which is five miles further up the river."

St. Louis had been settled in February, 1764, and at this time oon* tained, including its neighboring towns, over six hundred whites and one hundred and fifty negroes. It must be remembered that all the oountiy west of the Mississippi was now under French rule, and remained so until ceded again to Spain, its original owner, who afterwards sold it and the coiiniry including Kew Orleans to the United States. At Detroit there were, according to Capt. Carver, who was in the Northwest from 1766 to 1768, more than one hundred houses, and thu river was settled for more than twenty miles, although poorly cultivated - the people being engaged in the Indian trade. This old town has u history, which we will here relate.

It is the eldest town in the Northwest, having been founded by Antoine de Lamotte CadiUao, in 1701. It was laid out in the form of an oblong square, of two acres in length, and an acre and a half in width. As described by A. D. Frazer, who firat visited it and became a permanent Tesident of the place, in 1778, it comprised within its limits that space between Mr. Palmer's store (Conant Block) and Gapt. Perkins' house (near the Arsenal building), and extended back as far as the public barn, and was bordered in front by the Detroit River. It was surrounded by oak and cedar pickets, about fifteen feet long, set in the ground, and had four gates - east, west, north and south. Over the first three of these ffmtes were blook houaes proTided with fonr genu apieoe, each a sixpounder. Two six-gun Imtteries were planted fronting the liyer and in a parallel direction with the block honaes. There were four streets numiiig east and west, the main street being twenty feet wide and the rest fifteen feet, while the four streets crossing these at tight angles were from ten to fifteen feet in width.

At the date spoken of by Mr. Frazer, there was no fort within the enclosure, but a citadel on the ground corresponding to the present * northwest corner of Jefferson Avenue and Wayne Street. The citadel was inclosed by pickets, and within it were erected barracks of wood, two stoi ies liigh, suflBcient to contain ten officers, and also barracks sufficient to contain four hundred men, and a provision store built of brick. The citadel also contained a hospital and p-uard-house. The ol<l town of Detroit, in 177<S, cunUiuied about sixty houses, most of them one story, with a few a story and a half in height. They were all of logs, some hewn and some round. There was one building of splendid appearance, called the ** King's Palace," two stories high, which stood near the east ^te. It was built for Goremor Hamilton, the first governor commissioned by the British. There were two guard-houses, one near the west gate and the other near the GoYemment House. Each of the guards consisted of twenty*£[>ur men and a subaltern, who mounted r^pilarly erery morning between nine and ten o'clock. Each furnished fonr sentinels, who were relieved every two hours. There was also an officer of the day, who p-Tformed strict duty. Each of the gates was shut regidarly at sunset , even wicket gates were shut at nine o'clock, and all tha keys were delivered into the hands of the commanding officer. They were opened in the morning at sunrise. No Indian or squaw was permitted to enter town with any weapon, such as a tomahawk or a knife. It was a standing order that the Indians should deliver their arms and instruments of every kind belore they were permitted to pass the sentinel, and they were restored to them ou their return. No more than twenty-five Indians were allowed to enter the town at any one time, and they were admitted only at the east and west gates. At sundown the drums beat, and all the Indians were required to leaye town instantly, "niere was a council house near the water side for the purpose of holding council with the Indians. The population of the town was about sixty fiunilies, in all about two hundred males and one hundred females. This town was destroyed by fire, all except one dwelling, in 1805. After which the present *^ new" . town was laid out.

On the breaking out of the Revolution, the British held eyeiy post of importance in the West. Kentucky was formed as a component part of Virginia, and the sturdy pioneers of the West, alive to their interests, and xecogniziiig the gieat benefits of dbti^ning the oontiol of the trade in this part of the New World, held steadily to their porposes, and those within the oommonwealth of Kentucky proceeded to exercise their civil privileges, by electing John Todd and Richard Gallaway, burgesses to represent them in the Assembly of the parent state. Early in September of that year (1777) the first conrt was held in Harrodsburg, and Col. Bowman, afterwards major, who had arrived - in August, was made the commander of a militia organization which had been commenced the March previous. Thus the tree of loyalty was growing. The chief spirit in this far-out colony, who had represented her the year previous east of the mountains, was now meditating a move unequaled in lis boldness. He had been watching the movements of the British throughout the Northwest, and understood their whole plan. He saw it was through their possession of tlio posts at Detroit, Vinceunes, Kaskaskia, and other places, which would give them constant and ea^ aooess to the various Indian tribes in the Northwest, that the British intended to penetrate the country ftom the north and soutn, ana annihilate the frontier &rtresses. This moving, eneigetio nutn was Colonel, afterwards General, Gkorge Sogers Clark. He knew the Indians were not nnanimonsly in accord with the English, and he was convinoed that, could the British be defeated and ezpeUed from the Northwest, the natives might be easily awed into neutrality ; and by spies sent for the purpose, he satisfied himself that the enterprise against the Illinois settlements might easily succeed. Having convinced himself of the certainty of the project, he repaired to the Capital of Virginia, which place he reached on November oth. "While he was on his way, fortunately, on October 17th, Burp^oyne had been defeated, and the spirits of the colonists [greatly encouraged thereby. Patrick Henry was Governor of Virginia, and at once entered heartily into Clark's plans. The same plan had before been agitated in the Colonial Assemblies, but there was no one until Clark cunic who was sufficiently acquainted with the condition of afiuirs at the scene of action to be able to guide them.

dark, having satisfied the Viiginia leaden of the fSeasibility of his plan, reoeived, on the 2d of January, two sets of instructions - one secret, the other open - the Utter authorised him to proceed to enlist seven companies to go to Kentucky, subject to his oiders,.and to serve three months from ^eir arrival in the West. The secret order authorised him to arm these troops, to procure his powder and lead of General Ibmd at Pittsburgh, and to proceed at once to subjugate the country.

With these instructions Clark repaired to Pittsburgh, choosing rather to raise his men west of the mountains, as he well knew all were needed in the colonies iu the conflict there. He sent Col. W« B. Smith to Uol- iton for the same pnzpoM, but luither siiooeeded in laiaing the required irambeT of men. The settlers in these parts were afraid to leave their own firesides exposed to a vigilant foe, and but few could be induced to . join the proposed expedition. With three companies and several private volunteers, Clark at length commenced his descent of the Ohio, which he navigated as far as the Falls, where he took possession of and fortified Corn Island, a small island between the present Cities of Louisville, Kentucky, and New Albany, Indiana. Remains of this fortification may yet be found. At this place he appointed Col. Bowman to meet him with such recruits as had reached Kentucky by the southern route, and OS many as could be spared from the station. Here he announced to the men their real destination. Having completed his arrangements, and chosen his party, he left a small garrison upon the island, and on the 24th of June, dnxii^ a total eclipse of the sun, which to them augured no good, and which fixes bsjrond dispute the date of starting, he with his chosen band, fell down the river. His plan was to go by water as« £ur as Fort Massso or Massacre, and thence march direct to Kasksskia. Here he intended to surprise the garrison, and after its capture go to Cahokia, then to Yinoennes, and lastly to ]>etioit. Should he &il, he intended to march directly to the Miawssippi River and cross it into the Spanish country. Before his start he received two good items of infor- * mation : one that the alliance had been formed between France and the United States ; and the other that the Indians throughout the Illinois country and the inhabitants, at the various frontier posts, had been led to believe by the British that the " Long Knives" or Virginians, were the most tierce, bloodthu-sty and cruel savages that ever scalped a foe. With this impression on their minds, Clark saw that proper management would cause them to submit at once from fear, if surprised, and then from gratitude would become friendly if treated with unexpected leniency.

The march to Ivaskaskia was accomplished through a hot July sun, and the town reached on the evening of July 4. He captured the fort near the village, and soon after the village itself by surprise, and without the loss of a single man or by killing any of the enemy. After sufficiently working upon the feais of the natives, Clark told them they were at perfbot liberty to worahip as they pleased, and to take whichever side of the great conflict they would, also he would protect them from any barbarity from British or Indian foe. This had the desired effect, and the inhabitants, so unexpectedly and so gratefully surprised by the unlocked for tarn of afiEairs, at once swore allegiance to the American arms, and when Clark desired to go to Cahokia on the 6th of July, they accom- ' psnied him, and through their influence the inhabitants of the place snnendered, and gladly placed themselves under his protection. Thus

Ihs Northwbst Terbitoey

In the person of the priest at Kaskaskia, M. Qibault, Clark found a - powerfdl ally and generons friend. Clark saw that, to retain possession of the Northwest and treat saooessfnily with the Indians within its boundaries, he must establish a government for the colonies he had taken. St. Vincent, the next important post to IHtroit, remained yet to be taken before the Mississippi Valley was conquered. M. Gibault told him that he would alone, by persuasion, lead Vincennes to throw off its connection with Enpfland. Clark gladly accepted his offer, and on the 14th of July, ill comp;uiy with a fellow-townsman, M. Gibault started on his mission of peace, and on the 1st of August returned with the cheerful intelligence that the post on the " Oubache " had taken the oath of allegiance to the Old Dominion. During this interval, Clark established his courts, ])laced garrisons at Kaskaskia and Cahokia, successfully re-enlisted his men, sent word to have a fort, which proved the germ of Louisville, erected at the Falls of the Ohio, and dispatohed Mr. RocheblaTO, who had been commander at Kaskaskia, as a prisoner of war to Richmond. In October the County of Illinois was established by the Legislature of Virginia, John Todd appointed Lieutenant Colonel and Civil Governor* 'and in November General Clark and his men received the thanks of the Old Dominion through their Legislature.

In a speech a few days afterward, Clark made known fully to the natives his plans, and at its close all came forward and swore alle* giance to the Long Knives* While he was doing this Governor Hamilton, having made his various arrangements, had left Detroit and moved down the Wabash to Vincennes intending to operate from that point in reducing the Illinois posts, and then proceed on down to Kentucky and drive the rebels from the West. Gen. Clark had, on the return of M. Gibault, dispatched Captain Helm, of Fauquier County, Virginia, with an attendant named Henry, across the Illinois prairies to command the fort. / Hamikuii ivuew nothing of the capitulation of the post, and was greatly surprised ou his arrival to be confronted by Capt. Helm, who, standing at the entrance of the fort by a loaded cannon ready to fire upon his assailants, demanded upon what terms Hamilton demanded possession of the fort. Being granted the rights of a prisoner of war, he surrendered to the British General, who could scarcely believe hb eyes when he saw the force in the garrison.

Hamilton, not realizing the character of the men with whom he was contending, gave up hb intended campaign for the Winter, sent his four hundred Indian warriors to prevent troops itom coming down the Ohio» and to annoy the Americans in all ways, and Bat quietly down to pass th» Winter. Information of all these proceedings having reached Clark, he saw that iniinpdiate and decisive action was necessary, and that unless he captui i (I Hamilton, Hamilton would capture him. Clark received the news on the 'iOtli of January, 1779, and on February 4th, having sufficiently garrisoued Kaskaskia and Cahokia, he sent down the Mississippi a " battoe," as Major Bowman writes it, in order to ascend the Ohio and Wabash, and operate with the laud forces leathering for tlie fray.

On the next day, Clark, with his little force of ouu hundred and twenty men, set oat for the poet, and after incredible hard marching through mach mnd, the ground being thawed by the Incessant spring rains, on the 22d reached the fort, and being joined by his battoe," at once commenced the attack on the post. The aim of the American backwoodsman was unerring, and on the 24th the garrison surrendered to Ihe intrepid boldness of Clark. The French were treated with great kindness, and gladly renewed their allegiance to Virginia. Hamilton waa sent as a prisoner to Virginia, where he was kept in close confinement. During his command of the British frontier posts, he had offered prizes to the Indians for all the scalps of Americans they would bring to him* and had earned in consequence thereof the title Hair^bayer General," by -which he was ever afterward known.

Detroit was now without doubt within easy reach of the enterprising Virginian, could he 1)ut raise the necessar}' force. Governor Henry being apprised of this, prninis -d liim the needed reinforcement, and Clark concluded to wait until lie could capture and sufficiently garrison the posts. Had Clark failed in this bold u;idertaking, and Hamilton succeeded in uniting the western Indians for the next Spring's campaign, the West would indeed have been swept from the Mississippi to the Allegheny Mountains, and the great blow struck, which had b^n contemplated from the commencement, by the British.

But for this small army of dripping, but fearless Virginians, tho union of all the tribes from Georgia to Maine against the colonies might have been effected, and the whole current of our history changed."

At this time some fears were entertained by the Colonial Governments timt the Indians in the North and Northwest were inclining to the British, and under the instructions of Washintrton, now Commander-in- Chief of the Colonial army, and so bravely fightinfj^ for American independence, armed forces wer^ sent against the Six Nations, and upon the Ohio frontier, Col. Bowman, aclinic unckr tlie same general's orders, marched against Indians within the present limits of that State. These* expeditions were iu ihe maiu bucccsbfui, and the Indians were compelled to sue lor peace.

Tbb Vobthwut Tkbbitobt

Daring this same year (1779) the iamoitfl Land Laws** of Virginia were paased. The passage of these laws was of more consequence to the pioneers of Kentucky and the Northwest than the gaining of a few Indian conflicts. These laws confirmed in main all grants made, and guaranteed to all actual settlers their rights and privileges. After providing for the settlers, the laws provided for selling the balance of the public lands at forty cents per acre. To carry the Land Laws into effect, the Legislature sent four Virginians westward to attend to the various claims, over many of which great confusion prevailed concerning their validity. These gentlemen opened their court on October 13, 1779, at St. Asaphs, and continued until April 26, 1780, when they adjourned, having decided three ^thouaand elaime. They were aucoeeded by the anrvejor, who came in the person of Mr. Qeoige May, and aasnmed his duties on the 10th day of the month whose name he bore. With the opening of the next year (1780) the troubles conceining the navigation of the Missiaaippi commenced. The Spanish Government exacted such measures in rehition to its trade as to cause the overtures made to the United Slates to be rejected. The American Government considered they hl^d a right to navigate its channel. To enforce their claims, a fort was erected below the mouth of the Ohio on the Kentucky side of the river. The settlements in Kentucky were being rapidly filled l)y emigrants. It was durhvy this year that the first seminary of learning was established in the West in this young and enterprising Commonwealth.

The settlers here did not look upon the building of this fort in a friendly manner, as it aroused the hostility of the Indians. Spain had been friendly to the Colonies during their struggle lor independence, and though for a while thfs friendship appeared in danger from the ' refusal of the free navigation of the river, yet it was finally settled to the aatisfiiction of both nations, r The Winter of 1779-80 was one of the most unusually severe ones ever experienced in the West. The Indians always referred to it as the «\6reat Cold.** Numbers of wild animals perished, and not a few pioneers lost their lives. The following Summer a party of Canadians and Indians attacked St. Louis, and attempted to take possession of it in consequence of the fiiendly disposition of Spain to the revolting colonies. They met with such a determined resistance on the jiart of the inhabitants, even the women taking part in the battle, tluit they were compelled to abandon the contest. They also made an attack on the settlements in Kentucky, but, becoming alarmed iu some unaccountable manner, they fled the country in great haste.

and Connecticut. The agitation concerning ibis sulgect finally led New York, on the 19th of February, 1780, to pass a law giving to the delegates of that State in Congress the power to cede her western lands for the benefit of the United States. This law was laid before Congress during the next month, but no steps were taken concerning it until September 6th, when a resolution passed that body calling ui>on the States claiming western lands to release their claims in favor of the whole body. This basis formed the uuiou, andwas the first after all of those legiiilative measures which resulted in the creation of the States of Ohio, Indiana, IDiDds, Ifiohigan, Wiaoonflia and Ifinnefota. In Deoember of tiie flame year, the plan of conquering Detroit again arose. The oonqnest might Imye easily been eflfeoted by Clark had the neoessaiy aid been famished bun. Nothing deoisive was done, yet the heads of the Government knew that tiie sa£9ty of the Noifhwest from British invasion lay in the oaptnxe and retention of that important poelw the only nnoonqnered one in the territory.

Before the close of the year, Kentucky was divided into the Coon* ties of Idnoolo, Fayette and Jefferson, and the act establishing the Town of Louisville was passed. This same year is also noted in the annals of American history as the year in which occurred Arnold's treason to the United States.

Virginia, in accordance with the resolution of Congress, on the 2d day of January, 1781, agreed to yield her western lands to the United States upon certain conditions, which Congress would not accede to, and the Act of Cession, ou the part of the Old Dominion, failed, nor was anything futher done until 1788. During all that time the Colonies were bnsily engaged in the struggle witii the mother oonntiy, and in eooseqiienoe thereof but Uttle heed was given to the western settlementB. Upon Ihe 4th ef Jnly, 1778, the first birth north of the Ohio River of AmciioHi psrentsge oeeorted, being that of John Both, son of John Roth, one of the Moravian missionarieSy whose bsnd of Christian Indians snfleied in after yasn a horrible massacre by the hands of the frontier settlers, who had been exasperated by the murder of several of their neighbors, and in their rage committed, without regard to humanity, a deed which forever afterward cast a shade of shame upon their hves. For this and kindred outrages on the part of the whites, the Indians committed many deeds of cruelty which darken the years of 1771 and 1772 in the history of the Korthwest.

Daring the year 1782 a number of battles among the Indians and frontiersmen occurred, and between the Moravian Indians and the Wyandots. In these, horrible acts of cruelty were practised on the captives, many of such dark dt^t^ds tiauspiring under the leadership of the notorious frontier outlaw, Simon Oirty, whose name, as well as those of his brothers, was a terror to women and children. These oeooired obiefly in the Ohio valleys. Cotemporary with them were several engagements in Kentucky, in which the famous Daniel Boone engaged, and who, often by his skill and knowledge of Indian warfare, saved the outposts troiu cruel destruction. By the close of the year victory had perched upon the American banner, and on the 30th of November, provisional articles of peace had . been arranged between the Commissioners of England and her unconquerable colonies. Cornwallis had been defeated on the 19th of October preceding, and the liberty of America was assured. On the 19th of April following, the annlTersaiy of the battle of Lexington, peace was proclaimed to the army of the United States, and on the 8d of the next September, the definite treaty whioh ended our revolationary struggle was conduded. By the terms of that treaty, the boundaries of the West were as follows : On the north the line waiB to extend along the center of the Cheat Lakes ; from the western point of Lake Superior to Long Lake ; thence to the Lake of the Woods; thence to the head of the Mississippi River ; down its center to the 31st parallel of latitude, then on that line east to the head of the Appalachicola River ; down its center to its juno* tion with the Flint ; thence straight to the head of St. Mary's River, and thence down along its center to the Atlantic Ocean.

Following the cessation of hostilities with England, several posts were still occupied by the British in the North and West. Among these was Detroit, still in the hands of the enemy. Numerous engagements with the Indians throughout Ohio and Indiana occurred, upon whose lands adventurous whites would settle ere the title had been acquired by the proper treaty.

To remedy this latter evil, Congress appointed commissioners to treat with the natives and purchase their lands, and prohibited the settlement of the territory until this could be done. Before the close of the J9U another attempt was made to capture Detroit, which was, howerer, not pushed, and Virginia, no longer feeling the interest in.the Northwest she had formerly done, withdrew her troops, having on the 20th of December preceding authorized the whole of her possessions to be deeded to the United States. This was done on the 1st of March following, and the Northwest Territory passed from the control of the Old Dominion. To Gen. Clark and his soldiers, however, she gave a tract of one hundred and fifty thousand acres of land, to be situated any where north of the Ohio wherever they choose to locate them. They selected the region opposite the falls of the Ohio, where is now the dilapidated village of Clarksville, about midway between the cities of New Albany and Jefferson ville, Indiana.

Thb Xobxrwebt Tbbbhobt

While the ficontier lemained thus, and Gen. Haldimand at Detroit lefOMd to eTMniate, alleging that he had no orders from his King to do BO, settlers were lapidly gathering about the inland forts. In the Spring of 1784, Pittsburgh was regularly laid oat»aiid ftom the journal of Arthur Lee, who passed through the town soon after on his way to the Indian council at Fort Mcintosh, we suppose it was not yery prepossesaing in ^pearance. He says :

" Pittsburgh is inhabited almost entirely by Scots and Irish, who live in paltry log houses, and are as dirty as if in the north of Ireland or even Scotland. There is a great deal of trade carried on, the goods being brought at the vast expense of forty-five shillings per pound from Thiladelphia and Baltimore. They take in the shops flour, wheat, skins and money* There are in the town four attorneys, two dootois» and not a prieet of any persnasiont nor ohnroh nor ohapoL'*

Kentnc^ at this time oontained thirty thonaand inhabitants, and was beginning to diseoaa measures for -a separation from Virginia. A land office was opened at LonisviUe, and measures were adopted to take defensive precaution against the Indians, who were yet, in some instances, incited to deeds of violence by the British. Before the doee of this year, 1784, the military claimants of laud began to ooonpy them, althoqgh no entries were recorded until 1787.

The Indian title to the Northwest was not yet extinguished. They held large tracts of land, and in order to prevent bloodshed Congresa adopted means for treaties with the original owners and provided for the surveys of the lands gained thereby, as well as for those north of the Ohio, now in its possession.

On January 31, 1786, a treaty was made with the Wahash Indians, The treaty of Fort Stanwix had been made in 1784. That at Fort Mcintosh in 1785, and through these much land was gained. The Wahash Indians, however, afterward refused to comply with the provisions of the treaty made with them, and in order to oompel their adherenee to its provisions, force was used.

During the year 1788, the free navigation of the Mississippi eame up in Googreis, and oaused various discussions, which resulted in no definite aetion, only serving to ezoite speculation in regard to the western lands. Congress had promised bounties of land to the soldiers of the Revolution, but owing to the unsettled condition of affairs along the Mississippi respecting its navigation, and the trade of the Northwest, that body h:i(l, in 1783, declared its inability to fulfill these promises until a treaty could be concluded between the two Governments.

thereon, and on the 14th of September, Connecticut ceded to the General Grovernment the tract of land known as the " Connecticut Reserve," and before the close of the following year a large tract of land north of the Ohio waa sold to a oompanj, who at once took measures to settle it.

By the provisions of this grant, the company were to pay the United States one dollar per acre, subject to a deduction of one-third for bad lands and other contingencies. They received 760,000 acrest bounded on the sonth by the Ohio, on the east' by the seventh range of townships, on the west by the sixteenth range, and on the north by a line so drawn as to make the grant oomplete without the reservations. In addi* tion to this, Congress afterwud granted 100,000 aeres to actual settlers, and 214,285 acres as army boonties under the resolutions of 1789 and 1790.