Jervis Cutler

“ About one hundred years ago, when the French began their settlement in this town, this nation had six hundred men. They became attached to French people, and have ever been their steady and faithful friends. After the massacre of the French inhabitants of Natchez, by the Natchez Indians, in 1728, those Indians fled from the French, after the French were reinforced, and came up Red river, and camped about six miles below the town of Natchitoches, near the river, by the side of a small lake of clear water, and erected a mound of earth, of considerable size, where it now remains. ”

“ Being constantly at war with every tribe, without distinction, their very name carries terror with it into every other nation. They are generally equally inimical to white people, which has been often witnessed by their attacks on the settlements at Saint Louis, the lead mines, and Saint Genevieve. They never fall upon these settlements without making great depredations, and mostly get off without suffering much injury themselves. But the traders, when they have once entered their villages, are perfectly safe, and are treated with much respect and hospitality while there. ”

“ The sugar-maple is a tree of immense value to the people of this State. It ought to be a first object with every man, when he begins to cultivate his land, as much as possible, to preserve these trees. ”

“ Above the Sioux river, and between that and the River Sacque, is a small hill, destitute of timber, which the natives say is inhabited by spirits, in shape of human beings, of a very diminutive size, not being, according to their description, more than six or eight inches high. Respecting these bodily spirits they have a number of ridiculous fancies. An old chief told me, with great gravity, that the occasion of their coming and living on this hill, was, because the Indians, a great many winters ago, were so wicked and foolish, as to strive to kill all the animals made for their use. ”

“ On a branch of Red river, which comes in about one hundred and thirty miles below the Panis towns, it is said, silver mines have been lately discovered; and just below the first village, the Ra-ha-cha-ha, or the Missouri branch of Red river, enters from the north; which is a large stream, and the water so brackish, that it cannot be drank. At its head waters, the Indians collect large lumps of rock salt. From the Panis villages to the head of Red river the land is broken and mountainous, and wholly destitute of wood, excepting willows and small cotton wood trees on the borders of the streams. ”

“ The Tut-see-was or Flat-head Indians live on the west side of the Rocky mountains, on waters supposed to run into the Columbia river. The most that is known of the Flat-heads, is from the Minetares, or Grossventres, who are at war with them, and often take prisoners. They say that this nation resides in one village on the west side of a large and rapid river, which runs from south to north, at the foot of Rocky mountains. Their number is not ascertained; are a timid, inoffensive people, and possess an abundance of horses. ”

“ Although they are great hunters and distinguished warriors, and often ramble far in these excursions, they live in villages, and raise corn, beans, squashes, pumpkins, and melons. They are proud and overbearing, viewing all other nations with contempt. In their war expeditions, they are courageous, patient, and persevering;enduring great fatigue and hardship with the utmost fortitude. They delight so much in blood, that no sufferings are too great to encounter, if it be necessary in making their attacks upon their enemy by surprise. ”

“ On the north side of the Missouri, near the Rocky mountains, resides a nation of Indians, who are numerous, and who are the inveterate enemies of the Gross-Ventres and Crow Indians, and frequently fall on their hunting parties. Their are called Black-foot Indians. I saw one of this nation, who was a prisoner taken by the Crow Indians. He was a large, well made, and his complexion as light as the Gross-Ventres. They are a roving nation, have no villages, nor do they raise any kind of produce. ”

“ The pecan, or Illinois hickery, grow plenty on the Mississippi. In the swamps and lowest flooded land, the cypress of a large size is the principal growth. Where the land is less inundated the swamp and live oak abound, which is highest estimated for ship building. The points at the bends of the river, and ends of islands, are chiefly covered with thickets of small willows. At the confluence of the Ohio with the Mississippi, its width is very little increased, and continues generally about a mile and a half, as far as the Natchez, where it begins to grow somewhat broader. ”

“ The productions of Louisiana are cotton, sugar, rum, indigo, rice, corn, furs, and peltry. It also affords lumber, tar, pitch, lead, horses, and cattle. The fertility of the soil admits of great increase of these and an additional supply of many other articles. The culture of the sugar cane, which has already become considerable, may doubtless be carried to a very great extent. At present, cotton is the largest and most profitable production. Indigo is on the decline. Further north than the Iberville, the sugar cane is liable to be injured by the cold, and the crops rendered uncertain ”

“ Any man may take as many wives as he pleases, but the first wife is to be treated as queen, and the rest as only hand-maids and associates. One of the regulations said to have been adopted by the Creek nation, merits the highest commendation. It is the prohibition of the use of spirituous liquors. In their treaties with the white people, it has been said, they have insisted that no kind of spirits should be sold to their people; and when attempts have been made to run kegs of spirits, the Indians, on a discovery, have destroyed them with their tomahawks. ”

“ The Keyes, or Keychies, live on the east band of Trinity river, a small distance above where the road crosses from Natchitoches to Saint Antoine. They consist of only sixty men; have their peculiar language, but speak Caddo; intermarry with them, and live in great harmony. They plant corn and other vegetables.
The Inies, or Tachies, live about twenty-five miles west of Natchitoches, on a small river, which is a branch of the Sabine. This nation, like all their neighbours, is diminished, having only about eighty men; speak the Caddo language, and live in amity with them. ”

“ Mindawawarcarton band extend their hunting ground from the mouth of the Saint Peters, to the Crow-wing river, on both sides of the Mississippi. They live in tents of dressed leather, which they transport by means of horses and dogs, and ramble from place to place during the greater part of the year; and yet are the only band of the Sioux, who cultivate corn, beans, and other vegetables. Their land is level, fertile, and well watered. To their own traders they are friendly, but inveterate to those who carry merchandise to their enemies, the Chippeways. ”

“ From the tops of these elevations, the land gradually slopes back from the river, without gravel or rock, and is covered with valuable timber. It may be said with truth, that, for fertility of soil, no part of the world exceeds the borders of the Mississippi; the land yields an abundance of all the necessaries of life, and almost spontaneously; very little labour being required in the cultivation of the earth. That part of Upper Louisiana, which borders on North Mexico, is one immense prairie; it produes nothing but grass ”

“ This prairie has the appearance of a good soil, but is found to be too cold for cotton and Indian corn, which thrive much better on land where there has been a growth of wood. Little or no wheat is raised, as they have no mills to grind it. The inhabitants are a mixture of Spaniard, French, Irish, and Americans, who are generally poor, and extremely ignorant.
A few miles above this prairie, the land begins to be moderately hilly. Near the river, the timber is oak, hickory, and some pine, but back from the river the growth is mostly pine for thirty or forty miles. ”

“ Cincinnati is handsomely situated on a first and second bank of the Ohio, opposite Licking river. It is a flourishing town, has a rich, level, and well settled country around it. It contains about four hundred dwellings, an elegant court house, jail, three market houses, a land office for the sale of Congress lands, two printing offices, issuing weekly Gazettes, thirty mercantile stores, and the various branches of mechanism are carried on with spirit. Industry of every kind being duly encouraged by the citizens, Cincinnati is likely to become a considerable manufacturing place. ”

“ Aliatans, La Plays, principally inhabit the rich plains, from the head of the Arkansas, embracing the heads of Red river, and extending to the mountains on the borders of New Mexico. They possess no fire arms, but are warlike and brave; for the Spaniards fear these people, and take care not to furnish them with the implements of war. Their country abounds with wild horses, and raise immense numbers of horses, asses, and mules themselves. ”

“ The country in which we were encamped is level to the south, but to the north and west the mountains are in sight, with steep ridges, approaching the river; and to the east is a large mountain, entirely insulated from the Rocky mountains, called the Turtle. This mountain, with the country round it, is covered with timber. Large bands of Indians encamp near it, during the winter for the conveniency of wood. In some places, wood is so scarce that they perish with cold, for want of it. ”

“ On the south side is a winter camp of the Crow Indians, consisting of forty-three huts. These huts were sunk three feet below the surface of the ground, but otherwise are built nearly similar to those of the Gross-Ventres. In the centre a post is erected, with notches cut in it for steps, and a hole is left open at the top of it, sufficiently large for a man to crawl out, which is their passage out and in, during the winter. At this encampment we prepared our buffaloe skin canoes, to descend the Big-horn river, which is large, being three hundred yards wide, with a strong current. ”

“ On the State road, west of the Muskingum, are rich and moderate swelling hills. On the northern side of the road they gradually flatten off almost to a level, and are clothed with excellent timber, consisting principally of oak, hickery, beach, black walnut, blue and black ash, mulberry, elm, buckeye, cherry, and gum. The soil is deep and rich. This description of land extends from the head waters of the Muskingum, to the waters of Scioto and Miami's, and northward to Lake Erie with little variation. Only a few large hills and ridges are distributed over a great extent of country. ”

“ The Catalaw nation is only the remnant of a formidable, brave, generous people, now reduced to a small tribe. They reside on a river of the same name, which forms a boundary line between North and South Carolina. In their present situation, they are entirely surrounded by white inhabitants. A tract of land of 444,000 acres, has been assigned them, on which they have agricultural improvements. They are said to consist of about four hundred and fifty souls, and have about one hundred and fifty warriors. ”

“ The land north of Springfield is much richer than that which lies south of it. Here the growth varies from oak to beach, ash, sugar-maple, black and white walnut, and cherry. Urbana is the seat of justice for the county of Champaign. It contains about sixty houses and is rapidly increasing in inhabitants. From this town to the Indian boundary line is about sixty miles; the land mostly level, the growth large, inclining to beach, the water good, and will admit of many excellent mill seats.
Returning back to the Ohio, the first town below Columbia is Cincinnati, five miles distant. ”

“ The men only partake of the feast, but the women are distant spectators; for they are never suffered to eat with the men, neither at feasts, nor in their own families, when strangers are present. This, however, does not prevent them from decorating themselves for the occasion. After all had assembled, the head chief of the village addressed the company in an impressive speech, in which he informed them, that it had been a practice, time immemorial, to celebrate the return of the spring, by a feast to the Great Spirit. ”

“ A very large part of the nation being devoted to hunting in the winter, and to war or idleness in the summer, they cultivate only small tracts of land which are barely sufficient to afford them sustenance. ”