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Black Hawk (1767-1838)

From original oil portrait by R. M. Sully, painted at Fortress Mon-
roe, while Black Hawk was confined there in 1833. The property of
the Wisconsin Historical Society.

I-

COLLECTIONS

OF THE

State Historical Society
of wisconsin

EDITED BY

LYMAN COPELAND DRAPER. LL. D.

SSCRBTARY OF THE SOCIETY

VOL. V

Being a page-for-page Reprint of the Original Issue of

UNDER THE EDITORIAL DIRECTION OF

REUBEN GOLD THWAITES, LL. D.

Secretary and Superintendent (

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MADISON

PUBI^ISHED BY THE SOCIETY

1907

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Publish;!) bg Autlfiirtt0 of <!n)atit;r SB, fCania of 1903

SiOOO COPIES raiNTSD

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DHMOCRAT PRINTING CO., MADISON. STATE PRINTKB

Contents and Illustrations

Portrait of Black Hawk

Preface to Reprint Edition. H. O. Thwaitea.

Page
Frontispiece

Vol. V

(Edited by Lyman Copeland Draper)

Part I

Facsimile of Original Title-page

Introductory

Objects of Collection desired .

Officers for 1867

Officers for 1868

Synopsis of Annual Reports of Executive Committee, 1860-66

Thirteenth Annual report of Executive Committee, January 3, 1867

Officers for 1860

Officers for 1861

Officers for 1862

Officers for 1863

Officers for 1864

Officers for 1865

Officers for 1866

Eulogies—

John Warren Hunt. Ezra S. Carr
Louis Powell Harvey. David Atwood

Oanadian Documents. Notes by The Editor

Documents: Letters — Prontenac to De Seignelay, 65; De Lou-
vigny to the Sovereign Council, 67, 78; De Callikes to the
Minister, 73, 76; De Vaudreuil and others to the Minister, 77,
80, 92, 104, 106, 107; Bishop of Quebec, 85. Narratives—
Father Charlevoix, 81; Father Crespel, 87; William J. Snell-
ing, 95.

vii

viii

23
32
33
31
35
36
37
38

48
64

iv Contents and Illustrations

Page
Historical Notices of De Louvigny, Perrot, De Lignery, De Beaujeu,

Marin, Du Buisson, De Villiers, De Noyelle, and St. Ange.

The Editor ....... 108

Early Days at Prairie du Chien, and the Winnebago Outbreak of

1827. William J. Snell'mg . . . . .123

Indian Honor: an incident of the Winnebago War. Western Courier 154
The Winnebago Outbreak. Lewis Cass .... 156
Letter to Gen. Henry Atkinson. Henry Bodge . . . 157

A Western Reminiscence. Ahram Edwards . . . 158

Part II

Fourteenth Annual Report of Executive Committee, Jan. 4, 1868 . 161

Eulogy on Henry Dodge. Silas Uriah Pinney . . . 173

The Winnebago War. Thomas L. McKenney . . . 178

Reminiscences of Wisconsin. John H. Fonda . . . 205

Dodge's Volunteers in the Black Hawk War. . . . 285
Documents: Letter — Henry Dodge to Potosi Republican^ 285.

Statement — Of Treasury Auditor, 285.
Reminiscences of the Black Hawk War. Emilie^ in Galena

Advertiser ....... 287

Battle of the Bad Axe. Henry Smith . . . .291

Capture of Black Hawk. David McBride .... 293

Dells of Wisconsin: Black Hawk's Cave. Newport Mirror . 298

Black Hawk's Autobiography Vindicated. J. B.Patterson . 300

Document: Letter— Oi Antoine le Clair, 302.

Death of Black Hawk. Willard Barrows . . . 305

Winnebagoes and the Black Hawk War. Washington Constitution 306
Sioux and the Black Hawk War . . . . .310

Document: Talk between Gen. Joseph M. Street and the

Sioux, 310.
Personal Narratives of Black Hawk War. Joseph Dixon and W.

Davidson ....... 315

Part III

Early History of Education in Wisconsin. W. C. Whitford . 321

Subdivisions: French Missionaries and Traders, 321; No
French Mission Schools, 323; Few First Settlers EducatecJ,
324; First Schools in Families, 324; Schools among Indians,
326; Military Posts and their Schools, 329; Early Schools
of Lead Region, 333; Settlers from Eastern States, 335; First
Schools of Eastern Settlers, 335; System of Public Schools,

Contents and Illustrations

Page
337; State University, 345; Union or Graded Schools, 345;
Blind Asylum, 346; Academies and Colleges^ 346; Conclu-
sion, 350.
History of School Supervision in Wisconsin. W. C. Whit ford . 352
Life and Services of J. D. Doty. Albert O. Ellis . . .369

Reminiscences of Hole-in-the-Day. Julius T. Clark . . 378

Sketch of Hole-in-the-Day. Alfred Brunson . . . 387

Note on Hole-in-the-Day. The Editor .... 400

Death of Hole-in-the-Day. St. Paul Press . . . .402

Murder of Hole-in-the-Day. St. Cloud Journal . . . 406

Additional Note on the Younger Hole in-the-Day. The Editor ' 408

Gen. Cass at St. Marie, 1820. Milwaukee Wisconsin and Charles

C. Trowbridge ....... 410

Index. The Editor .

416

Preface to Reprint Edition

The fourth volume of the Wisconsin Historical Collections
was published in 1859; nine years elapsed, however, before it&
successor appeared. The outbreak of the War of Secession,
with its enormous State expenditures, led to retrenchment
in every possible direction. Among the publications issued
under the patronage of the young Commonwealth were the GoU
lections; but this being one of the enterprises not essential to
the life of the State, very naturally it was in 1860 suspended
by special act. Six years later, the war being concluded, the
legislature authorized (chapter 135, Laws of 1866) a new vol-
ume, to be issued in three successive parts of a hundred and
fifty pages each, during the years 1867, 1868, and 1869. Dr.
Draper found it inconvenient to commence publication in
1867, but in the latter part of the following year published the
three parts simultaneously. These were, however, bound sep-
arately, and in paper covers — part I, comprising pp. 1-160;
part II, pp. 161-320; and part III, pp. 321-416, besides a gen-
eral index to all. Issued in that ephemeral form, these parts
were easily separated from each other, so that after a few years
only persons accustomed to book collecting or having the li-
brary habit, possessed the three intact. The result was, that
a complete set of volume v soon became known the country
over as a rarity. The Society's own stock, although carefully
husbanded, was quite exhausted as early as 1888-, twenty years
after publication; and collectors of Wisconsiniana have at any
time within the past fifteen years often paid second-hand deal-
ers for this volume as much as ten and twelve dollars. In
hundreds of otherwise complete sets of these Collections, poss-
essed by libraries and individuals, volume v is still missing;

viii Preface

by such, the present reprint will be welcomed with especial
pleasure.

Apart from its interest as a bibliographical rarity, the vol-
ume possesses much merit from the historical point of view.
The synopsis of the Society's Annual Eeports for the years
1860-66, when it possessed no medium of publication other
than the Madison newspapers, are important documents in the
history of the institution — to these being added the detailed
Eeports for 1867 and 1868.

The documents ranging from 1690 to 1730, concerning the
protracted Fox War^ were of much importance to the early
historian of the French regime in Wisconsin, and until recent-
ly were one of the chief sources for the story of this period.
The much fuller and more accurate presentation of material
thereon, in volumes xvi-xviii of the Collections, has, however
rendered these earlier versions of small avail. As for Dra-
per's historical notes thereon, they are of permanent value;
although, of course, to be read in connection with later investi-
gation of the subject.

The Winnebago War (1827) is interestingly dealt with by
several writers — the articles of greatest concern being those by
Spelling, Cass, and McKenney.

The Black Hawk War (1832) plays a large share in this vol-
ume, as in several of its successors ; perhaps the most interest^
ing feature of the present series of articles being the glimpses
afforded of the methods and personnel of Dodge's rough riders,
from the lead-mining district. Judge Finney's eulogy of
Dodge is in the same connection.

Hole-in-the-Day, a celebrated Chippewa head-chief, is elab-
orately treated by Messrs. Clark, Brunson, and Draper, and
some anonymous newspaper writers. Bom in 1800, and mur-
dered in 1868, this warrior made a lasting impression upon the
early American settlers in Wisconsin and Minnesota. These
recitations of his daring deeds and high character, present him
in a favorable light.

Two notable contributions to the educational history of the

Preface ix

State are presented by Prof. William C. W.hitford of Milton
College. Later accounts of this phase of State development
have largely been based on his original study.

It has been our custom in this series of reprints, to publish
as a frontispiece illustration to each volume the portrait of
some person whose name is prominently connected therewith.
Dr. Draper was thus given in volume i, Henry S. Baird in ii,
Augustin Grignon in iii, and John Y. Stnith in iv; Black
Hawk is herewith presented, as the principal historical char-
acter in volume v.

E. G. T.
Madison, Wis.

October, 1907

REPORT

AND

COLLECTIONS

OF THE

STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OF WISCONSIN,

FOR THE YEARS 1867, 1868 AND 1869.

VOLUME V.

MADISON, WIS.:

ATWOOD & RUBLEE, STATE PRINTERS, JOURNAL OFFICE.

Introductory

Froin 1854 to 1859, four volumes of Reports and Collec-
tions of the State Histoncal Society of Wisconsin were pub-
lished by the State. In 1860, the Legislature, to lessen the
public burdens, intermitted its publication; but with the re-
turn of peace and prosperity, the Legislature of 1866 author-
ized the Society to have published by the State Printer a Part,
of 150 pages a year, to commence in 1867, and to be consecu-
tively paged, so that three successive parts should form a vol-
ume. Circumstances unnecessary here to mention, prevented
the Secretary and editor of the Society's publications, from
commencing the issue of this new series until now ; but the de-
lay has added very considerably to the accumulation and com-
pleteness of the material from which to make the selection. For
the convenience of the editor, and for the sake of securing uni-
formity of paper, the third Part, that for 1869, is a little an-
ticipated in the order of time. The fifth volume of the
Society's Collections presents, we believe, quite as varied a his-
toric melange, and as replete with interest, as either of its
predecessors.

Again we appeal to our friends for appropriate contribu-
tions— to our surviving pioneers for their reminiscences, and
to our citizen soldiery who served in the late war, for diaries,
documents, personal and general narratives.

. L. C. D.

Madison, Wisconsin, Oct., 1868.

Objects of Collection Desired

1. Manuscript statements and narratives of pioneer. settlers — old letters »nd
Journals relative to tlie early history and settlement of Wisconsin, and of the
Black Hftwk war ; biographical notices of our pioneers, and of eminent citi-
zens, deceased ; and facts illustrative of our Indian tribes, their history,
characteristics, sketches of their prominent chiefs, orators and warriors, to-
gether with contributions of Indian implements, dress, ornaments and curiosities.

2. Diaries, narratives, and documents relative to the war of the rebellion,
and more especially of the part enacted by Wisconsin officers and soldiersi —
their heroic exploits, sufferings and services.

3. Files of newspapers, books, pamphlets, college catalogues ; minutes of
ecclesiastical conventions, conferences and synods, and other publications re-
lating to this Stftte or Michigan Territory, of which Wisconsin formed a part
from 1818 to 1835 — and hence the Territorial Laws and Journals, and flies of
Michigan papers for that period,^ we are particularly anxious to obtain.

4. Drawings and descriptions of our ancient mounds and fortifications, their
size, representation and locality.

5. Information respecting any ancient coin or other curiosities found In
Wisconsin. The contribution of such articles to the Cabinet Is respectfully
solicited.

6. Indian geographical names of streams and localities in this State, with
their significations.

7. Books of all kinds, and especially such as relate to American history,
travels and biography In general, and the West In particular, family genealogies,
old magazines, pamphlets, files of newspapers, maps, historical manuscripts,
autographs of distinguished persons, coins, medals, paintings, portraits, statuary
and engravings.

8. We solicit from Historical Societies and other learned bodies that Inter-
change of books and other materials by which the usefulness of Institutions
of this nature is so essentially enhanced — pledging ourselves to repay such con-
tributions by acts in kind to the full extent of our ability.

9. The Society particularly begs the favor and compliment of authors and
publishers to present, with their autographs, copies of their respective works for
its Library.

10. Editors and publishers of newspapers, magazines and reviews, will
confer a lasting favor on the Society by contributing their publications regu-
larly for its Library — or at least such numbers as may contain articles bearing
upon Wisconsin History, biography, geography or antiquities ; all of which
will be carefully presei'ved for binding.

Packages for the Society may be sent to, or deposited witb_ the following
gentlemen, who have kindly consented to take charge of them. Such parcels,
to prevent mistakes, should be properly enveloped and addressed, even if but a
single article : and it would, furthermore, be desirable that donors should for-
ward to the Corresponding Secretary a specification of books or articles donated
and deposited.

DEPOSITARIES :

Joel Munsell^ 82 State St., Albany.

Joseph Sabin. 84 Nassau St.. New York.

Samuel G. Drake, 17 Bromfield St. (up stairs), Boston.

Geo. Remsen, 819 and 821 Market St.. Philadelphia.

Hon. L. J. Farwell, Patent Oflflce. Washington.

I. A. Lapham, LL. D., Milwaukee. L. C. D.

[iv]

Officers for 1867

PRESIDENT :

INCEBASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D., Milwaukee.

YICE PBESIDBNTS :

Gbn. WM. R. smith, Mineral Point; Hon. JAS. T. LEWIS, Columhus;
Hon. henry S. BAIRD, Green Bay; Hon. HARLOW S. ORTON, Menasha;
Hon. ED. SALOMON, Milwaukee; Hon. L. J. FARWELL, Weatport;

Hon. JAS. R. DOOLITTLE, Racine; Hon. ANGUS CAMERON, La Crosse;

Hon. WALTER D. McINDOE, Wausau; Hon. W. A. LAWRENCE, JanesviUe.

HONOBABY VICE PBBSIDBNTS :

1. Hon. CYRUS WOODMAN, Mass.; 3. Hon. HENRY S. RANDALL, N. Y.;

2. Hon. perry H. SMITH, III.; 4. Hon. JOHN CATLIN, N. J.;

6. Hon. STEPHEN TAYLOR, Penn.
Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER
Recording Secretary — CoL. S. V. SHIPMAN.
X/iftrarian— DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

CDBATOBS :

EW'Offlcio.

Hon. L. FAIRCHILD, Hon. THOS. S. ALLEN, HON. W. B. SMITH,

Governor. Secretary of State. State Treasurer.

For One Year, For Two Years, For Three Years,

Db. C. B. chapman, Gov. L. FAIRCHILD, Hon. JAMES ROSS,

Hon. D. J. POWERS, Hon. E. B. DEAN, Jb., Pbof. J. D. BUTLER,

Db. JOS. HOBBINS, Pbof. E. S. CARR, S. G. BENEDICT,

Gbn. SIMEON MILLS, JOHN H. CLARK, S. H. CARPENTER,

F. G. TIBBITS, Col. B. A. CALKINS, E. W. SKINNER,

A. H. VAN NORSTRAND, CoL. F. H. FIRMIN, HON. GEO. HYER,

Gbn. G. P. DBLAPLAINB.HON. L. B. VILAS, J. D. GURNEB,

S. U. PINNBY, Gbn. D. ATWOOD, N. B. VAN SLYKB,

Hon. GEO. B. SMITH. HORACE RUBLEE. HON. D. WORTHINGTON.

STANDING COMMITTEES :

Pttl>7<oa«on«— DRAPER, RUBLEE, BUTLER, G. B. SMITH and CARPENTER.

Auditing Account*— POWERS, BENEDICT, FIRMIN, HYER and SKINNER.

Jf-lnonce— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, VAN SLYKB and GURNEB.

Printmff— RUBLEE, HYER, CARPENTER, CALKINS and ROSS.

Picture GkiMery— DELAPLAINB, FAIRCHILD, TIBBITS, ALLEN, VILAS and
SHIPMAN.

Literary Ewohanges —PlliVEY, FIRMIN, CLARK, HOBBINS, CHAPMAN and
VAN NORSTRAND.

Natural Historv— CARR, LAPHAM, HOBBINS, CHAPMAN and WORTHING-
TON.

SoliciUng Committee— SMITH, ATWOOD, BENEDICT, DEAN and DURRIE.

yominotiona— BENEDICT, MILLS, ALLEN, VAN SLYKBJ, GURNEB and
PINNBY.

Lectures and Essays— BTJTLKR, DURRIE, CALKINS, ROSS'and WORTHING-
TON.

OoWnet— SHIPMAN, CARR, VILAS, VAN NORSTRAND HOBBINS, and
FIRMIN.

Literary Purchases and Fixtures — DRAPER, DURRIE an<* CONOVER.

Endowment— YAN SLYKB. FAIRCHILD, WORTHINGTON, W. B. SMITH,
SHIPMAN and SKINNER.

OWtttoHea— ATWOOD, CALKINS, G. B. SMITH, ROSS, HYER and RUBLES.

[vii]

Officers for 1868

PRESIDENT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D . MiLWAUfcBB.

VICE PRESIDENTS :

Gen WM. R. SMITH, Mineral Point; Hon. JAMES T. LEWIS, Columl)U8;
HON. HENRY S. BAIRD, Qreen Bay; Hon. HARLOW S. ORTON, Watertown;
Hon. ED. SALOMON, Milwaukee; Hon. L. J. PARWELL, Weatport;

HON. JAS. R. DOOLITTLE, Racine; Hon. ANGUS CAMERON, La Crosse;
Hon. WALTER D. McINDOE, Wausau; Hon. WM. A. LAWRENCE, Janesville.

honorary VICE PRESIDENTS :

1. Hon. CYRUS WOODMAN, Mass.; 3. Hon. HENRY S. RANDALL, N. Y.;

2. Hon. perry H. SMITH, JIL; 4. Hon. JOHN CATLIN, N. J.;

5. Hon. STEPHEN TAYLOR. Penn.
Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — Col. S. V. SHIPMAN.
Librarian — DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.
CURATORS :

Ew-Offlcio.
HON. L. FAIRCHILD, Hon. THOS. S. ALLEN, HON. W. B. SMITH,

Governor. Secretary of State. State Treasurer.

For One Tear, For Two Tears, For Three Tears,

Gov. L. FAIRCHILD, Hon. JAMES ROSS, Hon. D. J. POWERS,

Hon. B. B. DEAN, Jr., Prop. J. D. BUTLER, Dr. JOSEPH HOBBINS,

Prof. B. S. CARR, S. G. BENEDICT, Gen. SIMEON MILLS,

JOHN H. CLARK, S. H. CARPENTER, A. H. VAN NORSTRAND,

Gbn. JAS. RICHARDSON, E. W. SKINNER, Gen. G. P. DELAPLAINE,

COL. F. H. FIRMIN, Hon. P. A. CH ADBOURNE, S. U. PINNEY,

Hon. L. B. VILAS, J. D. GURNEE, Hon. GEORGE B. SMITH

Gbn. DAVID ATWOOD, N. B. VAN SLYKE, Hon. E. W. KB YES,

HORACE RUBLEB. Hon. D. WORTHINGTON, JAMBS L. HILL.

STANDING COMMITTEES :

PMbMcotiona— DRAPER, RUBLEB, GEO. B. SMITH, BUTLER and CAR-
PENTER.

Auditing Accounts— F0WBR8, FIEMIN, HILL, W. E. SMITH and DEAN.

Finance— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, VAN SLYKE, W. B. SMITH and
GURNEB.

Literary Exchanges — FIRMIN, HOBBINS, CLARK, SKINNER and ALLEN.

GaMnet— SHIPMAN, CARR, FAIRCHILD, DURRIE, VILAS, CLARK and VAN
NORSTRAND.

Natural History — CHADBOURNE, LAPHAM, CARR, HOBBINS and VAN NORS-
TRAND.

Endowment—DRAPKR, VAN SLYKE, DELAPLAINE, WORTHINGTON, AT-
WOOD. BENEDICT, PINNEY, KBYES and HILL.

Prin«nflr_RUBLEE, CARPENTER, ROSS, KBYES and RICHARDSON.

Picture GaiZeri/— CARPENTER, DELAPLAINE, MILLS, FAIRCHILD, ALLEN,
VILAS and SHIPMAN.

Historical Narratives— PI-NNEY, FAIRCHILD, RUBLEB, SHIPMAN and
DRAPER.

Lectures and Essays— ROSS, BUTLER. DURRIE, BENEDICT, CHADBOURNE
and WORTHINGTON.

Soliciting Cowmi«ee— HOBBINS, W. E. SMITH, DEAN and RICHARDSON.

Annual Address— G. B. SMITH, ROSS, ATWOOD, FAIRCHILD and PINNEY

Arowtna«on«— BENEDICT, MILLS, ALLEN, GURNEB and SKINNER.

Library, Purchases and Fixtures— DRAPER, CONOVER and DURRIE

Ol)jtttorie«— ATWOOD, DELAPLAINE, VILAS, ROSS and POWERS

[viii]

EEPOET AND COLLECTIONS

OF THE

STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OF wisco:^si]sr

Vol. V. FOR THE YEAR 18 6 7. Pabt I.

Synopsis of Annual Reports

1860-66

During the suspension of the publication of our Report and
Collections^ the fourth and last volume of which was issued in
1859, the annual reports of the Executive Committee have
only appeared in the newspapers, and only in abbreviated form
in some instances ; a synopsis of them seems necessary in order
to preserve the principal features of each year's labors and pro-
gress in accessible form. With the renewal, by liberal Legis-
lative enactment, of the privilege of permanent publication, we
shall resume issuing the Executive Committee's annual report
in extenso.

Sixth Annual Report, January 3, 1860

A Society specially devoted to the single object of gather-
ing, preserving, and disseminating whatever pertains to the

2 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

history of an independent Eepublic like Wisconsin, is engaged
in a work of no unimportant character. History, from the
Greek word istoria, signifies literally a knowledge of facts and
events acquired by personal observation and research — an ex-
amination, investigation, or inquiry, in order to obtain a
knowledge of the facts and events sought for elucidation.
According to Yerrius Flaccus, it means the hnowledge of
things present; so that the idea of narration would seem to be
a secondary meaning of history. But in the progress of th©
science it designates, it has received a more extensive mean-
ing, until it has come to signify that science which treats of
man in all his social relations, political, commercial, religious,
moral and literary, as far as they are the result of general in-
fluences extending to large masses cf men, and embracing both
the past and the present, including, therefore, every thing
Tvhich acts upon men, considered as members of society; and
its object is, to represent with truth and clearness, the relations
in which man exists, and the influences to which he is subject.

In investigating these relations, and dispersing the clouds
which often envelope truth, history is a science; in exhibiting
its treasures of truth, it is an art. Individuals, events, actions,
discoveries and measures, are historical as far as they have a
bearing upon the many, in their relations to each other ; or, as
far as they disclose a truth, important with respect to the re-
lations which that truth may sustain to other truths or to
society.

History justly ranks among the highest and most useful of
sciences. It is, indeed, the reflector which enables us to account
for the present, and shows us what may be the future, by plac-
ing the past vividly before us. The chief aim, therefore, of
such a Society as ours, is not so much to exhibit the treasures of
history, as to gather scattered facts, investigate their credibil-
ity, and place them in their proper relation ; or, in other words,
such a Society is properly devoted to the science, rather than
the art of history. The State Historical Society of Wiscon-
sin has, then, a mission of no small importance; and such
has been its conceded vigor and success, that its example has

1867] Annual Reports, 1860-66 3

been largely instrumental in leading to the organization of
some eight similar associations in the Western and South-
Western portions of the Union.

The Treasurer's Keport shows the receipts of the year, in-
cluding the small balance on hand at the date of his last re-
port, to have been $1,030.89; the disbursements $948.47 —
leaving a balance of $82.72 in the General Fund. The bal-
ance of $47.77, previously reported in the International Liter-
ary Exchange Fund, still remains unexpended.

During the past year, the increase of the Library from ordi-
nary sources has been 813 volumes — 378 by purchase, 431 by
donation, and 4 by exchange. The year preceding, the pur-
chases were 424 volumes, donations 442, exchanged 241 — the
latter, except ten volumes, were from M. Vattemare, as the
first fruits of his system of International Literary Exchanges.
Deducting those received from M. Vattemare, we shall find
the past yearns increase of the Library comparing very nearly
with that of the preceding; year; and though -the numbetr
of volumes purchased was 46 less, more money was expended
for them, and a large proportion of them are really more
rare and valuable. Our expenditure for books in 1858, was
$586.29; while, in 1859, it amounted to $711.71. In 1858,
among the large class of works added to the Library were
60 folios and 5i6 quartos — total 106 volimies; in 1859, 32
folios and 74 quartos — total 106 volumes.

In this exhibit of the increase of the Library the year
past, we have given only the augmentation from the ordi-
nary sources; but outside of these ordinary sources a still
larger increase has been secured — from the large book pub-
lishers of the comitry. In the summer and autumn of 1858,
the Corresponding Secretary of the Society, in his capacity
of State Superintendent of Public Instruction^ visited Cin-
cinnati, Philadelphia, New York and Boston, and called on
several leading publishers, soliciting specimen copies of their
standard publications suitable for School Libraries. ITot hav-
ing time to call in person upon all the principal publishers, he
issued a circular addressed to them, on the 10th of "Nov.f 1858,
2

4 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

soon after his return home — the following extract from which
will sufficiently explain the object:

"In my forthcoming Annual Report to the Legislature of
Wisconsin, I shall strongly urge the adoption of a permanent
State system of School Libraries; recommending that a special
fund be set apart for this purpose, so that the Libraries may
not only be creditably commenced, but annually replenished
with solid and useful books, calculated to suit the tastes, and
meet the wants, of all classes of community. I am well per-
suaded, that the Legislature will be inclined to adopt some
good plan — ^probably the township system, similar to that of
Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. It is urged by the leading edu-
cators, and principal men of the State, and cannot, I think,
fail of success.

"While recently in Philadelphia and ^N^ew York, I called on
several of the most prominent publishers, and suggested that
they send me a sample copy of such of their publications as
they might think appropriate for School Libraries, so that I
might use them for a double purpose — first to submit to the
Legislature in evidence of the great saving that might be made
by having a State system by which to procure the works at
the lowest wholesale rates, instead of leaving the Towns to
purchase of peddlers and others at the highest retail prices;
and, secondly, from which to make, eventually, a suitable se-
lection for such School Libraries. When done with them, I
propose to place them in the Library of the State Historical
Society of Wisconsin, as the gift of the several publishers who
contribute them — the Historical Society Library being the
largest, best, and most consulted of any in the State, and hence
the books, when placed in that collection, would still be in a
position to attract the attention of the hundreds and thousands
who visit the Library annually."

As the result of this solicitation, 987 volumes have been re-
C€a.ved — ^nearly all of which may be regarded as works of a
sterling and standard character. It has been usual, we believe,
for State Superintendents of Public Instruction to appropriate

1867J Annual Reports, 1860-66 5

such sample volumes to their private libraries; but, the
late Superintendent thought that such a valuable collection
should inure to the benefit of the public, and he deemed the
State Historical Society a more fitting receptacle than the
small library connected with the Superintendent's department,
v^^here they would have been consulted only to a limited ex-
tent. In the Library of our Society, they will better subserve
the purpose of the publishers and donors, prove more acces-
sible to the public, and are still ready for convenient reference
to such person or persons as the State may designate to exam-
ine and determine the books for school library purposes. The
cost of this collection, at ordinary rates, would not have been
less than twelve or fifteen hundred dollars.

As these books have been formally conveyed to the Society,
and added to its Library, the red increase the past year has
been, from ordinary sources 813 volumes, from publishers 987
— total, 1800 volumes.

During the year past, 722 unbound documents and pam-
phlets have been received. And among the most valuable li-
brary additions have been forty-two bound newspaper files —
eighteen of which relate to the last century, from 1763 to 1800 ;
and many curiosities have been added to the cabinet. The Li-
brary now numbers 7,053 volumes, and 5,400 unbound pam-
phlets and documents, making together 12,453. 'No additions
to the Picture Gallery reported.

A new volimie — the fourth of the Society's Reports and Col-
lections, has been issued during the past year, containing quite
a variety of papers, of permanent value, on historical, antiqua-
rian and scientific subjects, which, it is hoped, may prove as
useful and acceptable as its three predecessors.

Seventh Annual Report, January 2, 1861

The Annual Keports of the Executive Committee and Treas-
urer, exhibit the receipts into the Treasury, including the bal-
ance at date of the last annual report, $1,203.19; disburse-
ments, $1,115.48 ; leaving a balance on hand of $87.71. The

6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

additions to the Library the present year have been 837 vol-
umes, and 1,134 documents and pamphlets, making a total ad-
dition of 1,971 works. The totri number of volumes now in
Ihe Library is 7,890, and including the unbound documents
;and pamphlets, 14,400. The whole number of bound news-
,paper files in the Library is 493, covering almost the entire
^period of the last century, with scattering volumes of an earlier
date, and altogether replete with deeply interesting historic
events and associations. There are fifty-one oil paintings in
the Picture Gallery.

Eighth Annual Report, January 2, 1862

The receipts into the Treasury, including the small balance
on hand at the connnencement of the past year, have been
$1,087.71, and the expenditures $965.13 — leaving an unex-
pended balance of $122.68. .

The Library a year ago numbered 7,89"0 bound volumes,
and over 6,500 unbound documents and pamphlets, or an
aggregate of 14,400. During the past year the Library addi-
tions have been 610 volumes, and 711 unbound documents and
pamphlets — ^giving an aggregate increase of 1,321; and exhib-
iting a total of 8,500 bound volumes, and over 7,200 unbound
documents and pamphlets, now in the Library, or combined
over 15,700. Of the past year's addition, 258 were folios, and
53 quartos — an unusual proportion of this class, owing to the
large number of accumulated newspaper files which we have
recently had bound and placed upon our shelves. In classify-
ing these additions, 349 are works on history, biography, gene-
alogy, travels, publications of Historical and other learned
societies, send bound newspapers; 68 relate to agriculture,
science and the mechanic arts; 148 pertain to laws and leg-
islation, and 45 are of a miscellaneous character.

The chief feature of the Library increase the past year has
l)een the large addition of bound newspapers. In 1855 we had
forty volumes of newspaper files bound; the Society's files
have been ever since acciunulating. We have, the past year.

1867] Annual Reports, r 860-66 7

had 240 volumes bound, and obtained fifteen volumes by pur-
chase and nine by donation, making the total increase of our
newspaper collection 264 volumes, of which twenty^seven are
of quarto and 237 of folio size. The fifteen volumes purchased
are all, except one, English newspapers, published between
1768 and 1794 — exceedingly valuable for their antiquity, as
well as for the current record of events in the then American
Colonies, and in the infancy of our new Kepublic. Beside
these, there are 78 other newspaper files, also published beyond
the limits of Wisconsin, from 1844 to 1860, of which 22 vol-
umes are made up of daily papers of New York, Chicago and
London, and eleven volumes of semi and tri-weeklies, aggre-
gating 125 years of newspaper literature. One hundred and
eeventy-one volumes, of which seventy-four are dailies, and
furnishing in the aggregate 300 years of newspaper literature,
are exclusively Wisconsin papers, published from 1845 to 1861.
Many of the volumes comprise as many as three or four years
of a single weekly newspaper in a separate volume; so that
the entire 264 boimd newpaper files added to our collections
the past year cover in the aggregate a period of 425 years.

The entire collection in the newspaper department now num-
bers 757 volumes, and must aggregate very nearly a thousand
years of this valuable class of historical literature. There ia
no other such collection, nor any thing at all comparable to it,
to be found in the West, and but few equal to it anywhere;
and probably there is no State in the Union which has so com-
plete a collection of its own leading newspapers as our So-
ciety has brought together during the past eight years.

Such newspaper files, besides their uses for the purposes of
history, their gratification and interest as objects of curiosity,
and the opportunities they so richly afford us for contrasting
the tame and simple past with the astonishing strides of the
ever-onward present, also contain thousands of published legal
notices, advertisements, and records of public events. These
are often required &.S evidence in our higher courts: and upon
tliese unpretending newspaper files, which are too generally
regarded as of littls value, immense property interests fre-

8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

quently depend. In some important cases, not only the Courts
but the Lawyers on both sides, have gladly availed themselves
of the files and documents in the archives of our Society. It
will not be unreasonable to predict, that in the course of time,
titles to landed property in litigation in Wisconsin, to the value
of millions of dollars, will depend — perhaps exclusively de-
pend— upon the legal notices and advertisements found in the
precious files of newspapers preserved by the Society, and
which commence with the newspaper literature of Wisconsin,
in 1833, and extend to the present time — each day contribut-
ing additions to the collection. In this particular alone, the
Society is silently, yet constantly, collecting and preserving
what will inevitably prove of vast importance to the pecuniary
interests of the people of every part of our State. By means
of our preserved newspaper files, citizens from distant parts of
the State have come to the seat of Government, and been en-
abled to prove their just claims, and get them allowed by the
Legislature — and, in some instances, newspaper publishers
themselves, for advertising for the State.

The Library rooms have undergone some important changes
and improvements, particularly in appropriate shelving for the
largely increased bound newspaper collections. The Libra-
rian has devoted his time exclusively to the interests of the
Library — receiving some ten thousand visitors during the year
— re-arranging and better classifying the books on the shelves
— arranging and collating newspaper files for binding, and cat-
aloguing the books proper and newspaper files on the ampli-
fied card system of Prof. Jewett, now so generally adopted by
all the large Libraries of the country. This important work
of systematic cataloguing is designed to be prosecuted until all
the unbound docmnents and pamphlets are included.

In drawing to a close, our report of the Society's last yearns
history, we cannot but express the conviction, that with the
additions made to the Library and Cabinet, and the largely in-
creased facilities and conveniences of the Library itself, the
year 1861 has shown as much advancement in all that attaches
to a good and useful public Library as any former year.

1867] Annual Reports, 1860-66 9

And what a field of historic culture is still spread out before
us ! Look at the wide extended territory from Lake Superior
on the ISTorth, to the Illinois prairies on the South, and from
Lake Michigan on the East, to the Mississippi on the West —
presenting an area of fifty-four thousand square miles, nearly
as large as England and Wales combined, and five-sixths the
size of Scotland and Ireland together. Such is Wisconsin! — •
and she can boast a history as varied and interesting as that of
any of her sister States of th<e ]^orth-West. Eor ages the Red
Man had roamed her luxuriant woodlands and uindulating
prairies, when the adventurous Catholic missionaries, nearly
two hundred years ago, penetrated her borders, and planted
missions at Depere, and at Che-goi-me-gon, or La Pointe, on
Lake Superior. Marquette and his hardy band of explorers
scK>n ascended Eox River, and down the Wisconsin, and from
our own territory first discovered the great Father of Waters,
the Mississippi. Following closely upon the self-denying mis-
sionaries in their indefatigable labors to plant the banner of
the cross on our soil, came those untiring couriers of the wil-
derness, the traders or merchant princes of the forest, with,
their train of voyageurs, who, in the gainful pursuit of com-
merce, penetrated almost every portion of Wisconsin, where
water-courses enabled them to float their light canoes, and
reach the Indian settlements. Then followed in their order
the successive and romantic French expeditions of De Lou-
vigny, Marin and De Lignery, for the chastisement of the
intractable Sauk and Fox Indians. About 1745 the bold
and adventurous I)e Langlades made at Green Bay, the first
permanent settlement in Wisconsin; and the younger De Lan-
glade led forth the tawny warriors of Wisconsin, who shared
in the many sanguinary conflicts of the old French and Indian
war, frv>m Braddock's defeat, in 1755, to the final English
conquest of Canada, in 1760. The location of an English gar-
rison at Green Bay in 1761, and its evacuation in less than two
years thereafter; the movements of Sieur Charles De Lan-
glade and the Wisconsin Indians during the Revolutionary
contest; the war of 1812, and the military affairs at Prairie du

lo Wisconsin Historical Collections m. v

Chien; the Winnebago disturbances of 1827, and the Black
Hawk war of 1832, and the succeeding rapid settlement and
development of the country — all combined to furnish fruitful
subjects of historic research and investigation.

But a new field of historic culture has been suddenly, and
unexpectedly opened up before us in the great Southern
rebellion of 1861. With over twenty thousand men in the
field and under arms, Wisconsin has a deep and abiding
interest in the result of the mighty contest now pending — a
contest which will mark a new era in the history of our com-
mon country. So much, at least, of this history as the men of
Wibconsin may assist in making, it is the imperative duty of
our Society to collect and preserve, as minutely detailed as we
can possibly obtain it. To this end, several hundred circulars
have been sent to the brigade, regimental and company officers
of our volunteers, appealing to their State pride to preserve
for the Society, diaries of the services, especially of our own
troops, and secure diagrams of interesting military localities,
and collect relics and trophies of the pending contest. Our
hopes are sanguine of securing much valuable material from
this source; and we conficlently trust that the Society, in
future years, may not want for facts or details to prepare a
full and impartial history of the services of our gallant volun-
teers in aiding to successfully quell the wicked and unnatural
rebellion of our misguided brethren of the South,

Ninth Annual Report, January 2, 1863

The Treasurer's Eeport gives a detailed statement of the
finances of the Society for the past year — exhibiting $1,130.08
in receipts, and $1,090.30 in disbursements, leaving a balance
of $39.T8 in the Treasury.

During the past year earnest appeals have not been wanting
to the officers of the several regiments which have been sent
from our State for the national defence, to keep diaries, and
preserve war trophies and relics, for the Society — some few
scattering fruits have already resulted therefrom; but a much
larger harvest, we trust, is yet to come.

1867] Annual Reports, 1860-66 11

The Library additions, so far as bound volumes are con-
cerned, have not been quite equal to the year preceding, while
the pamphlets and unbound documents exhibit a large in-
crease. A year since the Library numbered 8,503 bound vol-
umes, and 7,318 unbound documents and pamphlets, or an ag-
gregate of 15,821. The past year has added 544 bound vol
vmes, and 2,373 unbound documents and pamphlets — or
2,917 together; so that the total number of volumes now in
the Library, bound and unbound, aggregate 18,733. Of these,
674 are folios, and 790 quartos, after deducting about 44 du-
plicate quartos, which have been exchanged for works of les-
ser size; while the remainder of the works are chiefly octavos.
Another year, with proper interest and industry on the part of
the officers, members and friends of the Society, should bring
the Library up to fully 20,000 volumes.

During the nine years since the efficient re-organization of
the Society, the total cash disbursements of the Society have
been $9,128.36, of which $5,031.79 has been for books alone,
and $4,096.57 for rents, fuel, postage, cataloguing, and other
incidental purposes. These figures will probably show that a
larger portion of the total amoimt expended, has been for
books alone, than in any similar instance that can be cited in
the history of a public library. The average annual book
expenditure has been $459.08, and $455.17 for incidental
purposes.

Among the more important and noticeable additions of the
year is a nearly completed set of the Transactions of the Boyal
Society, London, from 1665 to 1835, in 137 volumes, in fine
condition. This rare and valuable work, together with 1,921
unbound documents and pamphlets, upon historical, scientific,
literary and other subjects, were purchased at the sale of the
library of the late learned Dr. John W. Francis, LL. D., who
died in N'ew York city in February, 1861, in his seventy-sec-
ond year, and who was one of the founders of the 'New York
Historical Society, and a member of many of the learned as-
sociations of both continents. It is a matter of no small mo-
ment, that our Society has been so fortunate as to secure such

12 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

valuable literary treasures from the library of so eminent a
scholar, author and antiquary.

A file of the Pennsylvania Gazette, for eight and a half
consecutive years, from July, 1755, to 'the close of December,
1763, conducted by the American Philosopher Franklin, is a
rare and precious relic of the past century, which has been se-
cured, by purchase, from Joseph Musser, an aged resident on
the borders of Wisconsin and Illinois, whose ancestors in
Pennsylvania took and preserved the numbers as they ap-
peared, and the whole has been kept as an heir-loom in the
family for the past one hundred years. The Society is greatly
indebted to Hon. J. W. Stewart, of Greene county, for his
services in securing this venerable addition to our newspaper
collection. This paper gives us a most interesting account,
from week to week, of the progress of the old French and In-
dian v/ar of that period, when Washington, Putnam, Gates,
Marion and others of the chiefs of the Bevolution, held but
subordinate military positions, and were being schooled for
their subsequent great and useful services to tlieir country.

Tenth Annual Report, January 2, 1864

The Treasurer's Report shows the financial condition of the
Society for the past year — exhibiting $1,042.78 received, in-
cluding the small balance on hand at the commencement of
the year, and $852.17 disbursed, leaving an unexpended bal-
ance of $190.61. During the ten active years of the Society's
existence, the total cash disbursements have been $9,980.53;
of which $5,387.79 has been for books and binding alone, and
$4,592.74 for rents, fuel, postage, cataloguing, and other inci-
dental expenses — thus exhibiting an average annual book ex-
penditure of $538.78 against $45 9-. 2 7 for incidental purposes.

During the past year, the Library additions have been 248
volumes, and 356 unbound documents and pamphlets, making
the total addition 604, Of these 112 are bound volumes of
newspapers, of folio size, 5 volumes of quarto size, the rest
being chiefly octavos. There are now in the Library 790 vol-
umes of folios, and 795 quartos.

1867] Annual Reports, 1860-66 13

The whole number of bound newspaper files in the Li-
brary reported last year, was 811 ; we now add as the result of
another year's efforts, 112 volumes — making a total of 923
volumes in the newspaper department. Of these additions,
the Boston Evening Post, 1769-Y4, in three folio volumes; the
Pennsylvania Packet and Advertiser, from 1782 to 1822,
nearly complete, and from 1831 to 1838, inclusive, in 79 vol-
umes; the Ca7'olina Gazette, 1798-1800, 1 volume; and the
Weste7'n Courier, Louisville, Ky., 1813-16, 1 volume, deserve
special notice.

A brief resume of some of the more important additions to
the Library during the pg.st ten years, wiir enable us better
to comprehend their extent and value. Among these may be
enumerated the Gentleman s llagazine, from 1731 to 1833, in
156 volumes; the Monthly Review, from 1749 to 1828, 203
volumes; European Magazine, from 1782 to 1823, in 84 vol-
umes; Dodsley's Annual Register, 1758 to 1854, 95 volumes;
Edinburgh Aniiuul Register, from 1810 to 1825, 23 volumes;
Political Magazine, from 1780 to 1891, 21 volumes; Literary
Magazine, from 1788 to 1794, 12 volmnes ; Port Folio, 27 vol-
umes; American Museum, from 1787 to 1792, 11 volumes;
Analectic Magazine, 11 volumes; Giles's Register, from 1811
to 1849, 74 volumes; Transactions of the Koyal Society, Lon-
don, from 1665 to 1835, 137 volumes; Repository of Arts and
Sciences, 10 volumes; J?ri^is/i State Papers — Rolls Ofiice Pub-
lications, 65 volumes, the Senator and Parliamentary Register
of Debates, 38 volumes; Universal History, 38 volumes; Brit-
ish Annual Obituary, 20 volumes; Eees' Cyclopedia, 45 vol-
umes; Appleton's New Cyclopedia, XQ volumes; MarshalFa
Naval Biography, 12 volumes; Transactions of the Spanish
Royal Academy of History, at Madrid, 32 volumes; Annals of
Congress, 42 volumes; Congressional Globe and Appendix, 40
volumes; Transactions of American Philosophical Society, 17
volumes; Publications, Smithsonian Institution, 11 volumes;
American Archives, 9 volumes; Plymouth and Massachusetts
Records, 16 volumes; New York, Colonial Docume.nts, and
Documentary History, 14 volumes ; Pennsylvania Archives and

14 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Records, 24 volumes; the North American Review, in part;
Transactions of the .^erican Academy of Arts and Sciences,
in part ; the publications nearly complete of all our American
historical and antiquarian societies; collections of voyages,
biographical dictionaries, and a very large and invaluable col-
lection on the early French explorers and explorations of
the E'orth-West, on American genealogy and American bib-
liography.

Probably few historical or literary institutions in our coun*
try have succeeded, in so brief a period, in accumulating so
rich and rare a collection of American and English newspa-
per files of the last century as it has been our good fortune
to bring together. It is probably much more extensive than
has been: supposed even by those most familiar with that de-
partment of our collections. As a matter of general interest
we give a list of such files as were published in the last cen-
tury alone — being only about one-ninth of our whole newspa-
per collection, yet this particular portion numbers 123 volimaes
and may almost be literally said to be worth their weight in
gold:

Vol

London Gazette

True Briton

Edinburgh Evening Courant . . .

Pennsylvania Gazette

London Evening Post

Edlnburgli Chronicle

Edinburgh Chronicle

Maryland Gazette

Boston Gazette

Edinburgh Advertiser

Boston Chronicle

Boston Evening Post, &c

Edinburgh Advertiser

Boston Evening Post, &c

Edinburgh Advertiser

Boston and New York Papers.

Pennsylvania Gazette, &c

Pennsylvania Evening Post . . .

Boston Gazette, &c

Boston Journal, &c

Edinburgh Advertiser

Boston and New York Papers.

Year.
1680-82
1723-24
1727
1755-6a
1757-58
1757-59
1759
1760
1760-62
1763-6T
1764
1765
1867-68
1769
1770
1771
1772
1772-7a
1773
1774
1775
1776-7T
1776-77
1778
1779
1779
1780-8a

1867]

Annual Reports, 1860-66 15

Royal Jamaica Gazette . .
Pennsylvania Packet . . .

Boston Chronicle

Pennsylvania Packet . . .
Edinburgh Advertiser . . .

Maryland Gazette

Edinburgh Advertiser . . . .
Edinburgh Advertiser . . . .
Pennsylvania Journal . .
Pennsylvania Packet . . .
Massachusetts Gazette . .
Edinburgh Advertiser . . . .
Pennsylvania Packet . . . .

New York Journal

Pennsylvania Packet . . .
Pennsylvania Journal . .
United States Gazette . .
Pennsylvania Packet . . .
United States Gazette . .
Pennsylvania Advertiser

London Chronicle

Pennsylvania Advertiser

Massachusetts Spy

London Chronicle

Poughkeepsie Journal . .
Massachusetts Spy . . . .

New York Diary

London Chronicle

Philadelphia Advertiser
Baltimore Intelligencer

Baltimore Gazette

United States Gazette .
Philadelphia New World
Philadelphia Minerva . .
Pennsylvania Advertiser
Massachusetts Spy ....
Pennsylvania Advertiser

Massachusetts Spy

New York Time Piece .
New York Journal ....
Philadelphia Advertiser
Philadelphia Advertiser .
Columbian Centinel . . .

Carolina Gazette

Columbian Centinel . . .
Baltimore Gazette

London Gazette 34

1782

1782-84

1783

1784

1785

1786

1787

1787-88

1788

1789-90

1790

1790-91

1791

1792

1793

1793-94

1794

1794-95

1794

1795

1795-96

1795-97

1795-99

1796

1797

1797-98

1797-99

1798

1798-99

1798

1798-99

1799

1767-99

Ten years ago this very month, Gen. W. E. Smith, Eev.
Charles Lord, Hon. Hiram A. Wright, Dr. John W. Hunt,
Prof. O. M. Conover, S. H. Carpenter and L. C. Dra-
per, met in the office of State Superintendent Wright, in
the iN'orth West comer room of the main floor of the old cap-
itol, adopted a new constitution, and re-organized the Society

1 6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. ^

under the charter obtained the year previous. The Society
hac^ had a nominal existence for five years, and had secured a
small book-case, three and a half feet wide, and four feet high,
containing four shelves. During the first year, Frank Hud-
eon — the first donor to the Society — contributed two volumes
cf Transactions of the American Ethnological Society, and an
original drawing of a lizard-shaped mound, discovered by him^
in 1842, near Third Lake, in Madison; a bibliographical vol-
ume on the Literature of American Local History, was re-
ceived from the author, Herman E. Ludewig, of 'New York;
and a patent deed of land in the Stat^ of ISTew York, dated
1794, and signed by Gov. George Clinton, from Dr. J. W.
Hunt. Gen. W. R. Smith delivered the first anniversary ad-
dress. And thus we have the sum total of the first year's do-
ings and collections of the Society. During Gov. FarwelFs
term, he caused a set of the Territorial and Stat« Legislative
Journals to be placed on the shelves as the gift of the State ; an
unbound file of three or four years of the Milwaukee Wiscon-
sin accumulated; and Hon. M. L. Martin delivered an histo-
rical address, and Rev. A. Brunson and Joshua Hathaway con-
tributed historical papers. Thus the first five years' gather-
ings of the Society did not exceed fifty volumes; and consid-
erable unoccupied space W5.s still left in the small book-case.
This case — ^which we still retain — occupied a conspicuous plaxje
in the Executive office during the administrations of Governors
Dewey and Earwell, with a lettered plate at the top, "State
Historical Society.'' The Society during that period was cer-
tainly in no very prosperous condition.

But at the annual meeting: of January, 1854, it was resolved
to make an earnest effort to accomplish something commen-
surate with the hopes and purposes of such an institution. A
circular was directed to be prepared and distributed by the
Corresponding Secretary, appealing for suitable contributions
for a Library and Cabinet. A committee was appointed to
memorialize the Legislature for an annual appropriation to aid
the Society in its objects and collections; and when the Sec-
retary read the memorial he had prepared for that purpose, to

1867]

Annual Reports, 1860-66 17

Gen. W. R. Smith, the latter approved the general scope of
the document, hut strenuously objected to asking for so large
an appropriation as five hundred dollars a year — ^two hun-
dred, he thought, was as much as should he asked for; that
by asking for five hundred, we should defeat the whole
object, and get nothing. The Secretary replied, that he
thought the Legislature would as readily grant five hundred
as two hundred for such a purpose; that little could be
accomplished with two hundred dollars, but with &ve hun-
dred, we could make a beginning, and he was willing the
v/isdom of the appropriation should be judged by its results.
While the old General shook his head in doubt, the memorial
was signed by the committee, and a few others — ^was pre-
sented to the Assembly by eTudge Orton, then the Madison
representative, who had it referred to the committee on State
affairs, of which Hon. Sam. Hale, of Kenosha, was chairman.
At Judge Orton^s suggestion. Judge Hale and his committee
spent a Saturday afternoon with the Secretary, at his private
library, who entertained them with an exhibition of his private
collections on Western history; and the committee concluded —
we hope wisely — that if a single individual could accomplish
so much, what might not the associated effort of a whole State,
like Wisconsin, effect? They unanimously recommended the
passage of an act in accordance with the prayer of the memo-
rialists— and, with the friendly attention of Judge Orton in
the Assembly, and Beriah Brown's efforts among the Sen-
ators, the bill passed without any material opposition. This
was the beginning of friendly legislative action in the Society's
behalf, which has since led Hon. Richard S. Field of 'New
Jersey, to point to its success as the result of the "enlightened
liberality of the Legislature of Wisconsin."

At the re-organization of the Society, in January, 1854, Dr.
Hunt was chosen Librarian, and transferred the Society's book-
case from the Executive Room to the office of the Secretary oJ
State, where it remained that year; though long before the
year closed, it was crowded with additions to the Library, and

i8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

several hundred volumes had to be stored in the private library
of the Secretary. In January, 1856, a small room, 15 feet
square, in the south-eastern corner of the basement of the Bap-
tist Church, was rented and occupied for two years, when fur-
ther room was needed — and in January, 1857, a room on the
west side of the basement of the same building, forty-four feet
in length by fourteen in breadth, was rented and occupied for
one year — ^when we removed into our present quarters, which
have since been somewhat enlarged. Our rooms, covering a
ground area of 45 by 60 feet, are so well packed, that further
extension would be exceedingly desirable.

More room we must have, sooner or later — and the next re-
moval should be a permanent one and to a fire-proof building,
if possible. A few friends sufficiently realize its importance,
and evince their willingness to lend a generous helping hand in
providing a fund for a fire-proof building sufficiently commo-
dious for the present and prospective wants of the Society.
Will not the friends of the Society in Madison and elsewhere,
resolve to make suitable provisions for this greatly needed ed-
ifice?

And when, ten years hence, thobe who may have the man-
agement of tho Society, meet to review its progress during ita
second decade, may we not fondly hope that they may have — •
not twenty thousand volumes, as our present number nearly
approaches — but twice twenty thousand volumes upon its
shelves, in a durable fire-proof building, worthy of our noble
Society, and worthy too of its generous, unflagging friends
who, from first to last, have sturdily and manfully adhered to
its fortunes ?

Eleventh Annual Report, January 3, 1865

The Treasurer's Eeport exhibits the receipts of the Society,
ill eluding the balance on hand at the commencement of the
year, $1,241.61 — the disbursements, $1,226.64, leaving an un-
expended balance of $14.97. Among the receipts of the year,
it is pleasant to notice a donation of $50 from the venerable

1867] Annual Reports, 1860-66 19

James Boorman, of the state iof ISTew York, an Honorary
Member of the Society, and a gentleman of proverbial benev-
olence. Of this expenditure, $609.10 has been for books and
binding, and $617.54 for rent and other expenses.

During the eleven years the Society has received State aid,
our total disbursements from the general fund has been $11-
207.17; of which $5,996 89 has been for books and binding,
and $5,210.17 for rents, fuel, postage, cataloguing and other
incidental expenses — thus exhibiting an average annual book
expenditure of $545.17, and $473.66 for other purposes.

During the past year, the Library additions have been 520
volumes, and 226 pamphlets and unbound documents — ^making^
of both together, 746 ; of which 242 were secured by purchase,
and 504 by donation and exchange. Of this increase, 34 are
quartos, 161 folios, the rest being chiefly octavos. The Library
now numbers 829 quartos, and 951 folios, which may he re-
garded as a large proportion of such works for a collection of
its size.

4jnong the past year's additions are 163 bound volumes of
newspapers — ten of them of the last century; making the to-
tal number of bound files in the newspaper department 1,086
— of which 132 were published in the last century, and one
volume in the century preceding. A majority of the bound
files added the past year cover the period of our civil war, and
embrace three leading dailies of !N'ew York city, one of Cin-
cinnati, and four of our own State — the remainder are week-
lies. The ten volumes of the last century range from 1755 to
1788. At a recent sale of the literary effects of the late Rev.
John D. Shane — a singularly industrious collector of matters
pertaining to Western history, 37 valuable volumes of news-
papers were secured; among them are files of papers pub-
lished in Cape Town, Africa, Sandwich Islands, Melbourne, in
Australia, Liberia, China, Smyrna, Constantinople, l!^ew Zea-
land, Kansas, ISTebraska, Oregon, California, Washington and
Utah Territories; and the Cherohee Phoenix — remarkable in
the history of newspaper literature — established thirty-five
years ago, and printed chiefly in Cherokee, though a part of
3

2 0 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

the English alphabet was used bv Geokge Guess, or Sequo-
yah, a half breed Cherokee, the inventor of a syllabic alpha-
bet of his native language, though he was himself unable to
read, and had no knowledge of any language save his own.
These curious files, representing the newspaper literature of
so many distant and diversified countries, will be examined
with singular interest by all classes of visitors.

Our newspaper files are becoming more and more complete
and consecutive, and consequently more valuable and useful
for all the purposes of history, statistics and general reference.
There are but few collections of the kind in the country that
exceed it — certainly none west of the 'New England States,
New York and Pennsylvania. It is invaluable and richly re-
pays the labor and expenditure necessary to its collection ; and
the Society should continue to make its newspaper department
a special object of attention and augmentation. Such files
serve to preserve, among other things, a vast number of state-
ments and narratives relative to our unhappy internecine war,
which will prove invaluable, and almost inexhaustible, sources
of reference to the future historian of these troubled times.

Efforts have been made to secure pledges for a sufficient
amount, payable in ^ve equal annual installments, to erect a
fire-proof building for the use of the Society. Success did
not equal the efforts made. In these exciting war-times, with
so much uncertainty attending all business calculations, most
men are timid and cautious about making pecuniary pledges
beyond what their necessities imperatively requiro As the
lease for the rooms now occupied by the Society expires with
the present year, and ampler accommodations are demanded
for our steadily increasing collection, the Executive Committee
has concluded to seek suitable rooms in the Capitol, where
greater conveniences, and increased safety from fire, will be
secured. We cannot but hope that those having this matter in
charge will generously respond to this request, and thus ren-
der the Library — now scarcely second in numbers or variety to
any in the West — more accessible and useful to the State offi-
cers. Supreme Court and Legislature. It is quite certain that

1867]

Annual Reports, 1860-66 21

the Library, Cabinet and Art Gallery would, in such new
quarters as it is hoped will be assigned for their reception, pre-
sent an attractiveness which could never be expected in the
cramped, ill-suited basement apartments we now occupy; and
give to the whole collection a higher estimate of intrinsic and
literary value than has hitherto been generally accorded to it.

Twelfth Annual Report, January 2, 1866.

The receipts of the year were $1,057.97; the disbursements
$1,051.53 — ^leaving an unexpended balance in the treasury of
$6.44. Of this expenditure, $661.12 has been for books,
newspaper files and maps, and $390.41 for rent and other
purposes — exhibiting $115.95 above the average amount ex-
pended for books, and $83.25 less than the average for miscel-
laneous purposes.

During the year, the Library additions have been 3.68 vol-
umes, and 806 unbound documents and pamphlets; making
together 1,174 volumes and documents. Of the volumes
proper, 170 were purchased, and 198 secured by donation and
binding up newspaper files; of these 35 are quartos, and 50
folios — ^making a total in the Library of 1,001 folios, and 864
quartos.

To the Newspaper Department have been added 50 bound
volumes, of which six volumes are the Pennsylvania Gazette^
published by Dr. Franklin, in 1728 29; 1739-40; 1753-55;
and 1764 — making, altogether, fifteen years of this rare and
valuable newspaper file. A collection of 137 maps and at-
lases has been added to that department — ^many of them
early and rare American maps — Speed's of 1626; others of
1675; one of Quebec, 1694; and 40 different American Colo-
nial maps from 1700 to 1775, and 19 maps and battle plans
of the Revolution, 1775-83. The atlas, map and diagram col-
lection now exceeds 400 in number; and they form a curious
study of American geography, settlement and progress.

For several years past, tlie great want of the Society has
been to secure safer and more ample accommodations. To our

22 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.r

appeal, the Legislature responded promptly and generously,
by setting apart for our use a fine suite of rooms, occupying the
entire second main story of the south wing of the new CapitoL
That want happily supplied, we can now turn our attention to
the pressing necessity for re-commencing the publication of
Collections and Transactions. Snch a volume, if issued only
once in three years would prove a powerful stimulant in se-
curing historical narratives, which, persons competent to
write them, are now slow to prepare and furnish, with no cer-
tain prospect of their publication for many years. !Never was
there a time when so many deeply interesting, and, in soma
cases, even thrilling narratives, could be secured as now —
with reference not only to the early settlement of our State,
but to the heroic part performed by Wisconsin's sons in the
recent war for the Union. Our own means are too limited to
warrant such an enterprise; but, perhaps, the Legislature
might authorize such publication, to commence two or three
years hence, and limiting its issue to every three years there-
after— or by yearly installments.

Just eleven years ago the Society moved into this building,*
with a thousand and fifty volumes, and one thousand pamph-
lets in its Library; and each returning anniversary meeting
has shown a steady annual increase, sufficient, we trust, to
meet the reasonable expectations of all. Designing, in a few
days, to remove, with our twenty-one thousand volumes and
documents, to the new suite of rooms so fitting'Iy prepared for
our reception by the State, may we not hope that our im-
proved facilities and accommodations will stimulate every true
friend of the Society to redoubled efforts and exertions for its
increased prosperity?

♦The basemeut of the Baptist Church.

1867]

Thirteenth Annual Report 23

Thirteenth Annual Report

SUBMITTED JANUARY 3d, 1867

J^ever before lias the Society met under such favorable
auspices as on the present occasion. Last year we assembled
for the last time in our old, cramped and uninviting rooms —
now in our new commodious, light, airy and tasty apartments.
Immediately succeeding our last annual meeting, several weeks
were necessarily devoted to the removal of the Library and
collections, re-arranging and placing them in the cases in tKe
Cabinet, and in the Gallery ; and, in effecting this removal, it
is but an act of simple justice to gratefully acknowledge the aid
and friendly offices of Gov. Fairchild^ Superintendent Colb-
MAN, and Assistant Superintendent Meredith. This trans-
fer from our old quarters to our new suite of rooms has impar-
ted to the whole collection, Books, Cabinet, and Art Gallery — •
with their improved arrangement and better display — an in-
terest and importance never before adequately comprehended
or realized, even by the oldest and most devoted friends of the
Society.

Removal — Dedication — Visitors

Gratified, as we are, with the happy change and improved
appearance of our collections, we must feel doubly so when
we realize that these attractions and conveniences draw, as they
have, a largely increased number of visitors to our rooms — ■
thus greatly augmenting the popularity and usefulness of the
institution. The large attendance on the occasion of the ded-

2 4- Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

ication of our new rooms, on the 24th of January last, when
President Lapham and ex-Gov. Salomon delivered appropri-
ate addresses, proved but a precursor of the steady interest
manifested in the Library and Collections during the entire
year. While in our old rooms, the visitors, from the data kept
by the Librarian, numbered ten to twelve thousand annually;
and, during the past year the number could scarcely have been
less than fifteen or twenty thousand. The unflagging interest
thus manifested is the best evidence of the worth and useful-
ness of the Society ; and this will be better appreciated, when
it is contrasted with comparatively few visitors to similar
institutions in some of the older States. When your Secretary
visited one of them, where some forty thousand dollars had
been expended in providing a fine library building, he asked the
custodian of the attractive rooms and valuable collection, how
many visitors, during the year, honored themselves and the
library with their presence. The reply was ^^ about one hun-
dred and fifty.''

Publication of Transactions

Another event of no small importance to the usefulness and
growth of the Society, occurring the past year, deserves special
notice — the authorization by the Legislature of the re-com-
mencement of the publication of our Keports and Collections,
on good paper; not a volume a year as formerly, but a hun-
dred and fifty pages, so that three successive yearly install-
ments will serve to form a full volume. By the exercise of
careful scrutiny in the admission of none but really valuable
historical papers, we shall be able to publish much useful in-
formation pertaining to the early settlement and progressive
improvement of Wisconsin, and the worthy part our State and
people have taken in the late war for the preservation of the
Union. The regular publication of our Collections, commen-
cing with the present year, will tend to stimulate, we may
fondly hope, the contribution of much valuable historic mat-
ter which would otherwise be finally buried in the grave with

1867] Thirteenth A^nnual Report 25

their possessors; and while such an annual report goes forth,
it will bear upon its face the evidence that ours is a live Society
doing well its part in garnering and preserving the past and
passing history of our portion of the Great Eepublic. And
it will, furthermore, furnish a means of literary exchange with
scientific and historical associations as well as individuals, and
thus enable our Society to add largely to its Library and other
collections.

Receipts and Disbursements

The Treasurer's Report exhibits the receipts and disburse-
ments of the year. Including the small balance on hand at
the commencement of the year, the receipts have been,
$1,044.94, and the disbursements $928.02 — leaving an unex-
pended balance of $116.92 in the Treasury. Of this expend-
iture, $778.04 has been for books, papers," freight and binding
— all relating to the direct increase of the Library, and
$149.98 for postage, printing, repairs and incidental purposes.
In no former year have the expenses been proportionately so
large for the Library proper, and the incidental expenses so
small.

Library Additions

During the past year, the Library additions have been 923
volumes, and 2,711 imbound documents and pamphlets, num-
bering together 3,634. Of the volumes proper, 210 were pur-
chased, including newspaper files, bound by order of the Soci-
ety, and 713 donated; and, of this number, 60 are quartos,
123 folios, and the rest chiefly of octavo size The Library
now includes 1,124 folios, and 914 quartos. To our newspa-
per department have been added 160 bound volumes, making
the total number in the collection 1,296 — of which 138 were
published in the last century, and one in the cx^ntur-v preced-
ing.

2 6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Progressive Library Increase

The past and present condition of tlie Library are shown m
the following table:

L>ate.

Volumes
added.

Documents
and pamp's.

Both
together.

Total in
library.

1854, Jan. 1

1,000

1,065

1,005

1,024

1,107

1,800

837

610

544

243

520

368

923

55
2,000
3,065
1,305
1,988
1,607
2,528
1,971
1,321
2,917
604
746
1,174
3,734

1855, Jan. 2

1,000

2,000
300
959
500
723

1,134
711

2,373
356
226
806

2,811

2,050

1856, Jan . 1

5,115

1857, Jan. 6

6,420

1858, Jan . 1

8,403

1859, Jan. 4

1860, Jan. 3

10,010
12,535

1861, Jan. 2

14,504

1862, Jan . 2

15, 825

1863, Jan. 2

18,742

1864, Jan. 2

19,346

1865, Jan . 3

20 092

1866, Jan . 2

21, 266

1867, Jan. 3

25, 000

11,101

13, 899

25,000

Extent of Library Additions

It will be seen by these figures, that the book additions have
been larger the past year than for either of the six years pre-
ceding, and with the book and pamphlet additions together,
larger than any previous year in the history of the Society.
These additions are varied and valuable, imparting additional
interest and completeness to the several departments of history
and biography, science, newspaper and magazine literature,
statistics, bibliography^ genealogy and local history, works on
the late rebellion, and several volumes of the valuable re-
prints and translations of W. Elliot Woodwabd^s^ Joseph
Sabiis^^s, and John G. S'hea''s historical series.

Character of the more Important Donations

The peculiarity of the year's additions have been a large
contribution of Madison newspaper files, from S. D. Carpen-
ter, and a valuable donation of JSTew York and Madison pa-

1867] Thirteenth Annual Report 27

per files, from Messrs. Delaplaine & Burdick; twenty-one
volumes of the Congressional Globe, to complete our set, from
Hon. J. R. Doolittle; a fine collection of educational pam-
phlets and documents, from Prof. C. H. Allen ; a choice col-
lection of 122 war pamphlets, and several bound volumes,
from Robert Clarke, of Cincinnati, and a valuable file of the
Scientific American, and other serials, from Gen. James Rich-
ardson. We have secured, by purchase, an exceedingly de-
sirable collection of pamphlets and docimients on the rebellion,
numbering about sixteen hundred, making our entire colleo-
tion on that subject nearly nineteen hundred.

Principal Donors of the Year

Beside the generous donors just named, we gratefully ac-
knowledge donations also from Hon. J. R. Doolittle^ Hon.
T. 0. Howe, Hon. W. D. McIndoe. F. A. Holden^ Alansoit
Holly, John S. Dean, F. W. Case, Gen. Simeon Mills,
Gen. James Sutherland, Silas Chapman, Col. S. V. Ship-
man, E. B. QuiNER, Gov. Fairchild, G. W. Fanestock, Gen.
A. Gaylord, Col. F. H. Firmin, B. W. Suckow, Rev. Geo.
Fellows, Mrs. Ballard, Maj. L. A. H. Latour, J. H. Shep-
PARD, J. D. Baldwin, J. Gallagher, Lieut. L. W. Pierce,
Hon. J. H. Rountree, C. E. Bross, E. W. Young, C. J.
Hoadley, E. Shippen, H. B. Dawson, O. H. Marshall,
J. R. Bartlett, J. R. Bates, S. Hayden, and J. H.
Ray; also from the States of Wisconsin, Vermont,
Michigan, Illinois, West Virginia, Iowa, and Kansas; and
from the American Philosophical Society, American Antiqua-
rian Society, 'New England Genealogical Society, the Massa-
chusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Chicago and Fire
Lands Historical Societies, and the Boston Public Library.

Pamphlet Additions

Aside from the large purchase of pamphlets and documents
on the Rebellion, the additions to the pamphlet department
have been large and valuable. The fine donation of educa-

2 8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

tional documents by Prof. C. H. Allen, and of war pampk-
lets by KoBERT Clabke^ have been already adverted to;
other donors have been: Gen. Simeon Mills^ 168; G. W.
Fanestock, 162 ; Gov. Fairchild, ^69 ; Hon. T. O. Howe,
36 ; S. H. Carpenter, 15 ; Col. S. V. Shipman, 12 ; Chicago
Historical Society, 9; Hon. C. A. Eldridge, 8; L. C. Bea-
PEE, 7 ; G. B. HoLDEN, 6 ; and many others a lesser number.

Map and Atlas Departm'ent

To the map and atlas department but a single addition haa
been made — a chart of Libby Prison, from Capt. !N"at. 'Roir
LiNS. The atlases, maps, charts and diagrams in our collec-
tion exceed four hundred.

Magazines and Newspapers

Sieventy-five magazines, newspapers and serials come regu-
larly to the Society, all, except six, as donations. The daily
papers are bound, and placed on the shelves for reference, as
frequently as there are enough of a kind for binding; the
weeklies are laid aside till not less than three years of a kind
are accumulated, which serve to make a volume of sufficient
thickness for binding and lettering.

Portrait Gallery

To the Art Gallery three portraits have been added during
the year. One of Hon. Daniel Wells^ Jr., an early Mil-
waukee pioneer, who served in the Territorial Legislature, and
since in Congress — painted by S. M. Brookes, and presented
by Mr. Wells; one of the late Hon. Joshua Hathaway^ an
early seti^ler of Milwaukee; and one of Kt. Rev. John M.
Henni^ Catholic Bishop of Wisconsin — both painted by Ber-
nard J. Dorward, and presented by Mrs. Anne J. Hatha-
way^ of Milwaukee, in fulfillment of a promise of her late hus-
band, Mr. Hathaway. We have now sixty oil paintings in
our Gallery, and, it is to be hoped, now that we have good

1867] Thirteenth Annual Report 29

apartments for the display of paintings, that othera of our
Wisconsin pioneers and war heroes will furnish theirs at an
early day.

Additions to the Cabinet

l^ine Indian relics and curiosities ; twenty-one specimens ot
Confederate and Southern shinplaster currency; one hundred
and eighteen coins and tokens; twenty specimens of natural
history; about fifty war relics, and twelve miscellaneous arti-
cles— making a total of two hundred and thirty additions to
the Cabinet. Among them, a copper coin, of the reign of Louis
XIV of France, dated 1655, .found at Ashford, Fond du Lac
county, from N. B Bull; a fine three penny piece of the reign
of WiLLLiM and Mary^ 1689, from Samuel Barber, Men-
dota; a "Mind Your Business" penny, 1787, from Wm. Hoef-
LiNG, Mendota; a fine collection of 51 tradesmen's tokens, and
six European coins, from W. 11. Holt; also a fine collection
of 57 tokens from I. A. Lapham; a large and valuable speci-
men of lead ore, weighing 196 pounds, almiost pure, from
Eidgeway, Wis., from Hon. N". W. Dean ; fine specimens of
lead ore from Hazel Green, Platteville and Galena, and cinna-
bar from the Alamanden mine, Cal., from Hon. D. J. Seely;
a fine collection of shells and other war relics from Maj. H. A.
Tenney, J. H. McFarlane, Capt. G. Jackson, Hon. L. S.
Dixon, Isaac Markins, Mrs. S. A. Barton, Capt. C. H.
Barton, Mrs. S'. 11. Smith, A. J. Cole and D. W. Fernan-
dez, including a large rebel flag captured by the 12th Wis.
volunteers at Orangeburg, S). C, Feb. 12th, 1865 ; a proclama-
tion of Sir Wm. Berkeley, Governor of Virginia, 1641 60,
found at Warwivk C. H., Va., from J. W. Winter; a wax
candle, said to have been brought to America in the reign of
Charles II; Isaac Baldwin's Yale College Diploma, Sept.
10, 1835 ; an ivory cane head, curiously inlaid, said to have
been made by a French prisoner in the Bastile, from Mrs. E.
M. Williamson ; a piece of wood and a piece of wall paper
from the private box in Ford's Theatre, in which President
Lincoln was shot, from J. S. Bliss ; a f ac simile letter, folded

30 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

and bound in miniature book form, of Gen. Cass to the Chicago-
Internal Improvement convention, 1848, from Gen. David At-
wood; and the seal of the village of Madison, 1846, from T.

H. BOVEE.

Endowment Needed — Conclusion

There is probably no similar Society in the country that has
done so much with such limited means, as ours — ^much that we
have accomplished having been secured by donations. While
our annual means remain substantially the same as in former
years, the cost of all new books, as well as old historical liter-
ature, has very largely increased — hence we cannot now pur-
chase as many volumes in a year as before the war; and thi»
enhanced cost of books tends to restrict book buyers, and
hence necessarily lessens book-givers. Very much of the old
historical literature, as well as the new issues, are beyond our
reach — our means being too small for our varied purposes of
binding, postage, freight, and incidental expenses, to enable
us to purchase only a tithe of what we ought to secure.

In this dilemma we ought more earnestly than ever before
to take energetic action to secure Endowtnent Funds ^ as many
of the kindred institutions of our country are doing. Prob-
ably a Binding Fund would be the most desirable with which
to cormnence. Had we such a fund, of from three to "^yq
thousand dollars, the income from it would enable us to do
much needed binding each successive year, of which we now
have necessarily to deny ourselves — our thousands of classified
pamphlets, and our new addition of Rebellion documents, are
of this class. With such a fund secured, our General Fund
would be relieved of a heavy tax, and thus enable us to pur-
chase more largely of works on history, science and solid lit-
erature. The commencement of a Binding Fund might be
made by subscription, payable one-fifth a year till all be paid,
and thus render it of easy payment; a series of lectures might
be provided in our rooms from good speakers in the State, who
could be secured at a little or no cost to the Society; and our
lady friends of Madison would gladly, no doubt, take the lead

1867] Thirteenth Annual Report 3 1

in an Annual Festival for the benefit of such a fund. Cannot
some such idea be adopted, and pushed forward with unflagging
energy till success should crown the effort? What other So-
cieties have done, ours can do if we try.

At the close of eighteen years from the formation of the
Society, and thirteen since its re-organization — whence its real
prosperity may be dated — we report, with no small pride and
pleasure, a Library of twenty-five thousand volumes, bound
and unbound, including nearly thirteen hundred bound vol-
umes of newspaper files, over four hundred maps and atlases,
four volumes of published Reports and Collections, several hun-
dred manuscripts, a Gallery of sixty oil paintings, and a Cabi-
net of curiosities, embracing objects of virtu from almost every
portion of the globe.

32 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. r

Officers for i860

PRESIDENT :

GEN. WM. R. SMITH, of INIineral Point.

VICE-PEESIDENTS :

I. A. LAPHAM, LL. D., Milwaukee,
Hon. L. J. FARWELL, Weatport;
Hon. M. M. DAVIS, Portage;

Hon. a. I. BENNETT, Beloit;
CYRUS WOODMAN. Mineral Point;
Rev. a. BRUNSON, Prairie du Chien.

Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — S. V. SHIPMAN.
Librarian— DA^VEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

Hon. SIMEON MILLS,
Hon. H. S. ORTON,
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
HORACE RUBLEB,
S. H. CARPENTER.
F. H. FIRMIN,

CURATOKS :

GEN. DAVID ATWOOD,
Hon. GEORGE HYER,
Hon. J. P. ATWOOD,
S. G. BENEDICT,
F. G. TIBBITS,
J. ALDER ELLIS.

Gen. G. P. DELAPLAINB,
Hon. J. Y. SMITH,
Prof. J. D. BUTLER,
Dr. C. B. chapman,
J. D. GURNBB,

Wm. gennet.

standing COMMITTEES :

)Fu.UicaUons — DRAPER, RUBLES and J. P. ATWOOD.
Auditing Accounts — BENEDICT, DELAPLAINE and GURNEE.
Finance— TIBB1T8, POWERS, CONOVER, MILLS and GENNET.
Library, Fixtures and Purchases — DRAPER, DURRIE and CARPENTER.
Printing— BYBU, RUBLEE and SMITH.

Picture GaZ^er^/— CARPENTER, DELAPLAINE and ELLIS.
06i*Maries— RUBLES, DRAPER, D. ATWOOD, CARPENTER and GENNBT.
Literary Exchanges— FlRMlN, DRAPER and CHAPMAN.
Nominations— SHIPMAN, ELLIS and BENEDICT.

Building Lo<— DELAPLAINE, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, MILLS and DRAPER.
Bwiidtnsr— SHIPMAN, CHAPMAN, J. P. ATWOOD, POWERS and GURNDE).
Lectures and Essays— BJJTLiBR, ORTON, SMITH and HYER.
Soliciting Committee— BR APBR, ORTON, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS and
BUTLER.

1867]

Offi

cers

Officers for 1861

PEBSIDENT :

GEN. WM. R. SMITH, Mi c oral Point.

VICB-PKBSIDBNTS :

Hon. HARLOW ORTON, Madison; Hon. M. M. DAVIS, Portage;

Db. B. B. WOLCOTT, Milwaukee; Rev. A. BRUNSON, Prairie du CUen;

Hon. a. I. BENNETT, Beloit; CYRUS WOODMAN, Esq., Mineral Point.

Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — LA FAYEl'TB KELLOGG.
Ltftrorian— DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

Hon. SIMEON MILLS,
Gbn. DAVID ATWOOD,
Hon. GEORGE HYER,
HORACE RUBLEE,
JULIUS T. CLARK,
F. T. TIBBITS,

CUKATOKS :

Hon. J. P. ATWOOD,
Db. C. B. CHAPMAN,
Rev. J. B. BRITTON,
Prof. J. D. BUTLER,
S. G. BENEDICT,
J. ALDER ELLIS.

Hon. JOHN Y. SMITH,
Hon. GEO. B. SMITH,
Gbn. G. P. DELAPLAINE,
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
F. H. FIRMIN,
J. D. GURNEE.

STANDING COMMITTEES :

PuUications — DRAPER, RUBLEE and J. P. ATWOOD.

Auditing Accounts— 3. Y. SMITH, BENEDICT and FIRMIN.

Finance— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, ELLIS and GURNEB.

Printinfir— HYER, RUBLEE and J. Y. SMITH.

Library Fixtures and Purchases— DB-KVER, DURRIE and CONOVER.

Picture GaiZeri/— DELAPLAINE, TIBBITS and CLARK.

Literary Exchanges— FIRMIN, CHAPMAN and GURNEB.

On Abominations— CHAPMAN, J. P. ATWOOD and BENEDICT.

Lectures and Essays — BUTLER, DURRIE, RUBL'EB, HYER and BRITTON.

On Building Lot— DELAPLAINE, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, CLARK and

DRAPER.
On Building-TOWTSRS, MILLS, G. B. SMITH, ELLIS and J. P. ATWOOD.
Soliciting Committee — ORTON, DRAPER, BUTLER, KELLOGG and G. B.

SMITH.
On Cabinet — CONOVER, DURRIE and KELLOGG.
On Obituaries— D. ATWOOD, ORTON, RUBLEE, KELLOGG and BRITTON.

34 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol.

Officers for 1862

PRIBSIDBNT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D., Milwaukee.

VICIVPKESIDBNTS :

Gen. W. R. SMITH, Mineral Point; Hon. GEORGE GALE, Oalesville;'

Hon. HENRY S. BAIRD, Green Bay; Hon. G. W. HAZLETON, Columbus;

Gbn. JAMES SUTHERLAND, Janesville; Hon. CHARLES DURKEE, Kenosha.

Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — FRANK H. PIRMIN.
I/ibmrtow— DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

Hon. H. S. ORTON,
Gbn. SIMEON MILLS,
Hon. GEO. B. SMITH.
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
S. G. BENEDICT,
J. T. CLARK,

CURATORS :

Gbn. DAVID ATWOOD.
HON. J. P. ATWOOD,
Hon. GEORGE HYER,
HORACE RUBLEE,
J. ALDE'R ELLIS,
S. V. SHIPMAN,

Gbn. G. P. DELAPLAINli;
Hon. J. Y. SMITH,
Prof. J. D. BUTLER,
F. G. TIBBITS,
J. D. GURNEE,
H. W. TENNEY.

standing committbbs :

Publications— DRATER, RUBLEE and J. P. ATWOOD.

Auditing Accounts — J. Y. SMITH, BENEDICT and FIRMIN.

Finance — MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, ELLIS and GURNEE.

Printing — HYER, RUBLEE and J. Y. SMITH.

Library, Fixtures and Purchases— DRAVER, DURRIE and CONOVER,

Picture Gallery — DELAPLAINE, TIBBITS and CLARK.

Literary Exchanges — FIRMIN, GURNEE and TENNEY.

On Nominations — J. P. ATWOOD. BENEDICT and HYER,

Lectures and Essays — BUTLER, DURRIE, RUBLEE and TENNEY.

On Building Lot — ^DELAPLAINE, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, CLARK and

DRAPER.
On Building— TOWERS, MILLS, SHIPMAN, ELLIS and J. P. ATWOOD.
Soliciting Committee— ORTO'^, DRAPER, BUTLER, DURRIE and G. B

SMITH.
On Cabinet— CONOVER, DURRIE and SHIPMAN.
On Obituaries— I). ATWOOD, ORTON, GEO. B. SMITH and BUTLER

1867]

Officers

Officers for 1863

PRESIDENT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D., Milwaukee.

VICE-PRKSIDENTS :

Gbn Wm. R. smith, Mineral Point. Hon. JAMES T. LEWIS, Columbus.
Hon. henry S. BAIRD, Oreen Bay. Hon. CHARLES S. BENTON. La Croaae.
Gbn. JAS. SUTHERLAND, Janesville. Hon. CHARLES DURKEB, Kenosha.

Vorresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary— FRANK H. FIRMIN.
Librarian — DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

HON. H. S. ORTON,
Gbn. SIMEON MILLS,
Hon. GEO. B. SMITH,
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
S. G. BENEDICT,
J. T. CLARK,

curators :

Gbn. DAVID ATWOOD.
Hon. GEORGE HYER,
Prof. J. D. BUTLER,
HORACE RUBLEE,
J. ALDER ELLIS,
S. V. SHIPMAN,

Gbn. G. p. DBLAPLAINB,

Hon. J. Y. SMITH,

Hon. E. B. DEAN, Jr.,

F. G. TIBBITS,

S. H. CARPENTER,

J. D. GURNEE.

standing committees :

Publications— BRATBR, RUBLEB and J. Y, SMITH.

Auditing Accounts— G. B. SMITH, BENEDICT and FIRMIN.

/'mance— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, ELLIS and GURNEE.

Printing— KYER, RUBLEE and CARPENTER,

Library Fixtures and Purchases — DRAPER, DURRIE and CONOVER.

Picture Oallery — DELAPLAINE, TIBBITS and CLARK.

Literary Exchanges— FlRUm, GURNEE and CARPENTER.

Nominations — DEAN, BENEDICT and HYER.

Lectures and Essays — BUTLER, DURRIE, RUBLDB and CARPENTER.

Budlding Lof— DELAPLAINE, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, CLARK and ELLIS.

Building— MILLS, POWERS. SHIPMAN, J. Y. SMITH and DRAPER.

Soliciting Committee— ORTOii, DEAN, BUTLER, DURRIE and G. B. SMITH.

CaWnef— CLARK, DURRIE and SHIPMAN.

Obituaries— 1>. ATWOOD, ORTON, G. B. SMITH and BUTLER.

36 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Officers for 1864

PRESIDENT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D.. Milwaukee.

VICB-PBBSIDBNTS :

Gbn. WM. R. smith, Mineral Point. Hon. JAMES T. LEWIS, Columbus.
Hon henry S. BAIRD, Green Bay. Hon. CHARLES S. BENTON, La Crosse.
Gbn. JAS. SUTHERLAND, Janesville. Hon CHARLES DURKEE, Kenosha.

Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — FRANK H. FIRMIN.
I/i6rariow— DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer— O. M. CONOVER.

Hon. H. S. ORTONi,
Ghn. SIMEON MILLS,
Hon. GEO. B. SMITH,
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
S. G. BENEDICT,
S. H. CARPENTER,

CURATORS :

Gen. DAVID ATWOOD.
Gen. L. FAIRCHILD,
Hon. GEORGE HYER,
Pros'. J. D. BUTLER,
HORACE RUBLEE,
S. V. SHIPMAN,

Gen. G. p. DELAPLAINB,
Hon. B. B. dean,
Hon. D. WORTHINGTON,
F. G. TIBBITS,
J. D. GURNBB,
JOHN H. CLARK.

STANDING COMMITTEES :

Publications— DBAFBR, RUBLEE and BUTLER,
Auditing Accounts— G. B. SMITH, BENEDICT and FIRMIN.
Finance— MlhhS, CONOVER, POWERS, WORTHINGTON and GURNBIB.
Printing— UYBR, RUBLEE and CARPENTER.

Library, Fixtures and Purchases — DRAPER, DURRIE and CONOVER.
Picture Ga?Zery— DELAPLAINE, TIBBITS ftnd FAIRCHILD.
Literary Exchanges— FIRMIN, GURNEE and CARPENTER.
Nominations — BENEDICT, DEAN and HYER.

Lectures and ZJs&a^s— BUTLER, DURRIE, RUBLEE and CARPENTER.
Building Z/Ot— DELAPLAINE, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, CLARK and WORTH-
INGTON.
Building— UIIjIjS, POWERS, SHIPMAN, FAIRCHILD and DRAPER.
SoliciUng Committee— ORTON , DEAN, BUTLER, DURRIE and G. B. SMITH.
Cabinet— DURRIE, SHIPMAN and CLARK.
Obituaries— I). ATWOOD, ORTON, G. B. SMITH and BUTLER.

1867]

Officers

Officers for 1865

PBESIDBNT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D., Milwaukee.

YICIl-PBBSIDBNTS :

Gex. W. R. smith. Mineral Point; Hon JAMBS T. LEWIS, Golunihua;

Hon. henry S. BAIRD, Green Bay; Hon. JAS. R. DOOLITTLB, Racine,
Gbn. jambs SUTHERLAND, Janesville ; Hon. W. D. McINDOB, Wauaau.

Corresponding fifecretari/— LYMAN C. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary — Col. FRANK H. FIRMIN.
Li&ronan— DANIEL S. DURRIB.
Treasurer— O. M. CONOVER.

Hon. H. S. ORTON,
Ghn. SIMEON MILLS,
Hon. GEO. B. SMITH,
Hon. D. J. POWERS,
HORACE RUBLEE,
S. G. BENEDICT,

CURATORS :

Gbn. DAVID ATWOOD.
Gbn. L. FAIRCHILD,
Prop. J. D. BUTLER,
S. H. CARPENTER,
F. G. TIBBITS,
S. V. SHIPMAN,

Gbn. G. p. DELAPLAINB,

Hon. D. W0RTHINGT0N»

Hon. B. B. dean,

J. D. GURNEB,

N. B. VAN SLYKE,

JOHN H. CLARK.

STANDING COMMITTBBS :

PttftHcotions— DRAPER, RUBLEE and BUTLER.
Auditing Accounts — POWERS, BENEDICT and FIRMIN.
Finance— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, WORTHINGTON and GURNEB.
PrinfinflT— RUBLEE, CARPENTER and ATWOOD.
Library, Fixtures and Purchases — DRAPER. DURRIE and CONOVER.
Picture Ganery— DELAPLAINB, TIBBITS and FAIRCHILD.
Literary Exchanges — FIRMIN, GURNEB and CARPENTER.
:yomina«ons— BENEDICT, DEAN and VAN SLYKE.
Lectures and Essays — BUTLER, DURRIB, RUBLEE and CARPENTER.
Building Lot— DELAPLAINB, D. ATWOOD, TIBBITS, CLARK ftnd WORTH-
INGTON.
Btt«dinflf— MILLS, POWERS, SHIPMAN, FAIRCHILD and DRAPER.
Soliciting Committee— ORTON, DEAN, BUTLER, DURRIE and G. B. SMITH.
CaWnet— DURRIE, SHIPMAN and CLARK.
Ohituaries—B. ATWOOD, ORTON, G. B. SMITH and BUTLER.

38 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Officers for 1868

PRESIDENT :

INCREASE A. LAPHAM, LL. D. Milwaukee.

VICE-PRESIDENTS :

Gen. WM. R. SMITH, Mineral Point; Hon. JAMES T. LEWIS, Columbus.
Hon. HENRY S. BAIRD, Green Bay; Hon. HARLOW S. ORTON, Milwaukee i
Hoi«. EDWARD SALOMON, Milwaukee; Hon. L. J. FAR WELL, Westport;
Hon. JAMES R. DOOLITTLB, Racine; Hon. ANGUS CAMERON, La Crosse;
Hon. WALTER D. McINDOE, WaM&aw;H0N. WM. A. LAWRENCE, Janesville.

Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN G. DRAPER.
Recording Secretary— Coh. S. V. SHIPMAN.
LiftroriaJi— DANIEL S. DURRIE.
Treasurer — O. M. CONOVER.

CURATORS :
For One Year. For Two Years. For Three Year's.

Hon. GEORGE HYBR, Gen. G. P. DELAPLATNE, Gen. DAVID ATWOOD,
Hon. D. WORTHINGTON, Hon. GEORGE B. SMITH, Hon. L. FAIRCHILD,

Hon. JAMES ROSS, Gen. SIMEON MILLS, Hon. LEVI B. VILAS,

Prof. J. D. BUTLER, Hon. D. J. POWERS, Hon. E. B. DEAN,

S. H. CARPENTER, Dr. C. B. CHAPMAN, Col. E. A. CALKINS,

S. G. BENEDICT, Dr. JOSEPH HOBBINS, Prof. E. S, CARR,

J. D. GURNBE, F. G. TIBBITS, HORACE RUBLEB,

N. B. VAN SLYKE, S. U. PINNEY, COL. F. H. FIRMIN,

B. W. SKINNER. WALDO ABEEL. JOHN H. CLARK.

STANDING COMMITTEES :

Pw&Zioa*ions— DRAPER, RUBLEB, BUTLER, SMITH and CARPENTER.

Auditing Accowwfs— POWERS. BENEDICT, FIRMIN, HYBR and SKINNER.

Ffnawoe— MILLS, CONOVER, POWERS, VAN SLYKE and GURNBE.

Printing— KUBLiEF,, HYER, CARPENTER, CALKINS and ROSS.

Picture Gallery— DELAPLAINE, FAIRCHILD. TIBBITS, VILAS and SHIP-
MAN.

Literary Exchanges— Pl^^Wl, FIRMIN, CLARK, HOBBINS and CHAPMAN.

Natural History— CARR, LAPHAM, HOBBINS, CHAPMAN and WORTH-
INGTON.

Soliciting Committee — SMITH, ATWOOD, ABEEL, DEAN and DURRIE.

NominaUons — BENEDICT, MILLS, VAN SLYKE. GURNBE and PINNEY.

Lectures and Essays— BTlTlu^R, DURRIE, CALKINS^ ROSS and WORTH-
INGTON.

Co?)iftet— SHIPMAN, CARR, VILAS, ABEEL and FIRMIN.

Library, Fixtures and Purchases — DRAPER, DURRIE and CONOVER.

Endowment — VAN SLYKE, FAIRCHILD, WORTHINGTON, SHIPMAN and
SKINNER.

ObifMor^es— ATWOOD, CALKINS, SMITH, ROSS, HYER and RUBLEB.

1867] ]^^^ Warren Hunt 39

Eulogies

Dr. J. W. Hunt

At a special meeting of the Executive Committee, Tuesday
evening, Dec. 20, 1859, Prof. Ezra S'. Carr, of the State Uni-
versity, rose and said:

Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Historical Society: I
have been requested to make a few remarks concerning the life
and public services of one who has been called in the prime
of manhood, to exchange life, usefulness, the charms of home
and household ties, for an early grave. I come at youi* bidding
*'to fling my pebble on his cairn," conscious that many of you
who were wont to meet him at the stated gatherings of this So-
ciety, many who were more familiar with his private and per-
sonal history, could do better justice to the subject and the oc-
casion.

If anything can quiet the pulses of the busy life in which
most of us are absorbed, it is when that life is confronted by
the twin mystery of being, when fimeral bells solemnly toll
out the lessons of man's mortality, the brevity of his career,
the equality of all in suffering and death.

To-day, all is brightness — ^hope invites activity — the heart
beats high with expectation, and the brain labors for the ac-
complishment of great purposes — to-morrow both are dust.
The present seems our only possession, so dim are our recol-
lections of "that immortal sea which brought us hither," so
faint and fugitive our conceptions ojf the mysterious river
through which myriads pass and none return.

40 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

"Oh, none return from those quiet shores,
Who cross with the boatman cold and pale —

: We hear the dip of the golden oars —

' We catch the gleam of the snowy sail,

And lo ! they have passed from our yearning sight —
They cross the stream, and are gone for aye —

, We mfty not sunder the veil apart.

That hides from our vision the gates of day."

"Gone for aye/' leaving behind tliem sorrow and vacancy.
We turn from the still face of the dead, from the tenantless
house of clay, not altogether comfortless ; for we know that
even from the sacred dust vnll spring new creations of beauty
that !Nature, by her endless transformations, teaches how the
body hath immortality, and we know "this voice of !N'ature to
her foster child," her "inmate man," is but a type and shadow
of the higher immortality which revelation brings to light as
the eouFs prerogative.

We do not mourn when the gray-haired pilgrim lays aside
the enfeebled body, the benumbed senses which only imprison
the spirit enriched by long experience and knowledge; it is in
the loss of the young, those who are arrested in mid career,
that the world seems too much bereft.

Yet, truly, "that life is long which answers life's g|reat
end;" and, judged by this standard, the friend whose loss we
deplore to-night has neither lived briefly nor in vain.

Dr. John Warren Hunt was born in Upper Lisle, Broome
County, I^Tew York, Feb. 28, 1826, and was the second son of
Dr. Samuel M. Hunt of that place. I remember him first as
a bright, intelligent lad of fourteen, greatly interested in the
geological explorations then progressing in his native town.
He assisted me in collecting some of the fossils now in the cabi-
nets of the State University, aad the Geological Hall at Al-
bany, and accompanied me in my examination of neighboring
localities. Soon after this time he entered Homer Academy,
where he remained several years. Leaving the Academy, he
cc^mmenced the study of medicine, first with his father, and
afterwards under my instruction at Castleton, Vt., where he
distinguished himself among a large body of students for
his rigid economy and abstemiousness, and close application.

1867

John Warren Hunt 41

The peculiarities of his mind were apparent in his choice of
studies, the literature and sr^ience of the profession being more
attractive to him than those speci£c studies which are essen-
tial as preparation for its practice.

He left Vermont before completing his course, but subse-
quently received from Castleton Medical College the degree
of Doctor of Medicine; and I next heard of him in Wiscon-
sin, where he arrived in June of '49. He first settled in Dela-
field, where he experienced the anxieties and vicissitudes of a
physician's life, and where some members of this Society first
knew and befriended him. Dependent upon his own exertions
and generous to a fault, but for the kmdness of those friends,
whose favors he delighted in acknowledging, he could not so
soon have risen to a station of responsibility and usefulness.

In January, 1851, he was appointed assistant Secretary of
State, by William A. Barstow, then Secretary, removed to
Madison, and with the exception of a part of Col. Robinson's
Secretaryship, continued to serve in that capacity until Jan.,
'57, a period of ^ve years. In this office he gained a knowl-
edge of public affairs and public records which have become
proverbial.

During the first four years of his residence in our State,
while the order of the Sons of Temperance was vigorous. Dr.
Hunt was actively engaged in furthering its interests. He
was their Grand Scribe, and for a time edited the Old Oaken
Bucket, a neat quarto which was the organ of the order. Upon
the decline of the popular interest in that organization, Dr.
Hunt became interested in Masonry, which hq beilieved to
contain all the advantages of associated effort in the cause of
Temperance, Charity and Social Brotherhood. Masonry at-
tracted him by its imposing ceremonies, and its historical asso-
ciations. He was a diligent student of its literature, and re-
vered it as the asylum of Democracy in times when by means
of mystic rites and symbols, architects and artisans hid their
secrets of chemistry and metallurgy, and natural philosophy
from the eyes of popes and princes, who feared the spread of
knowledge among the people. To him it was an inheritance

42 Wisconsin Historical Collections voi.v

from the age of chivalry, when men armed and battled for a
rood of land in Palestine as now they would not for an. empire.
He knew that by its aid arts were protected, and the marvels
of Gothic Architecture given to the world. In common with
all imaginative minds, ho enjoyed those forms that seem to
link the present with the past, which make the symbolic
"work'' of the Masonic Lodge, as it were, commemorative of
the operative work which built Strassburg Cathedral, and the
noblest edifices of Great Britain.

Dr. Hunt was for many years one of the most active and
prominent Masons in the state. He presided for a long time
over the Hiram Lodge in this city, and for the past two years
has been the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Wiscon-
sin; Grand Secretary of the Grand Chapter; Grand Recorder
of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters; Grand
Recorder of the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of
Wisconsin, Commander of the Robert McCoy Commandery at
Madison, and was at the time of his death High Priest of the
Royal Arch Chapter of this city.

To his zeal and industry in the discharge of aK these ofiices,
his Masonic brethren bear grateful testimony; he died at his
post — the records of these various offices bear traces of his busy
pen until within a few days of his death. Besides attending
personally to an enormous correspondence and these records,
he prepared and published in the last two years nine different
reports of proceedings of Masonic bodies with which he was
connected, making no less than 748 octavo pages.

In those charities which are enjoined as the first of Masonic
duties — in sympathy for the sick and afflicted. Dr. Hunt was
never wanting. Many friends had he among the poor and
lowly — he could not see a brute beast, much less a human
cieature, suffer, without pain ; he gave lavishly and without os-
tentation.

As Justice, of the Peace in his ward, an officer of the Dane
Cavalry, a member of the Hook and Ladder Company, and as
deputy County Treasurer, he served the young city of his adop-
tion. As a trustee of the Baptist Society, he labored for its

186^

John Warren Hunt 43

prosperity, and gave cheerfully and liberally to the erection of
its edifice and support of its ministry ; the originator, and for-
merly an officer of the Madison Institute, he contributed to it
also, and lamented the suspension of its usefulness.

The number of societies haying for their object benevolence
and the public weal, to which Dr. Hunt belonged and contrib-
uted from his moderate income, is sufficient evidence that
benevolence was a distinguishing trait in his character.

For the past six vears he has been the Kecording Secretary
of tliis society; he has always been a steady contributor to its
Library, and in many ways has aided to advance its interests.
One of his last acts was to send a large contribution of pam-
phlets, ancient almanacks and other literary matter, thus evinc-
ing his continued interest in it.

He was himself a contributor to the literature of Wisconsin.
His first publication was the Wisconsin Gazeteer, issued in
1853, an octavo volmne of 256 pages, the first work of its
kind published here, and still valuable as a book of reference.
The next was the Wisconsin Almanac and Annual Kegister, in
1856, a valuable statistical work of 96 pages, which had a gen-
eral circulation, and was regarded as furnishing the most re-
liable information concerning the political and industrial con-
dition of the State. During the same year he visited Toronto,
Montreal and Quebec, on the occasion of the celebration of the
Grand Trunk Railway, and wrote for the Argus & Democrat a
series of descriptive letters over the signature of Kewassa, and
the following year another series from the Lake Superior coun-
tiy, over the same signature. The latter originally appeared
in the Milwaukee Wisconsin.

Loving books, with them he furnished his modest dwelling.
There you will find the most valuable geographical and sta-
tistical library in the State, with nearly everything in standard
literature, and much that is curious and rare.

He loved art too, and a few copies of the best ideals embel-
Lshed his home. Into that home, so changed and desolate, we
will not enter save to leave upon its threshold our memorial
.Q'arland. As brotlirr. hll^■.ban(], fntliov, we ki)0'\v he is mourned

44 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

tLere by bruised hearts; as a friend, many of us can bear wit-
ness to his unselfishness and fidelity.

The disease to which Dr. Hunt fell a victim was hereditary,
and had given him repeated warnings of its approach. By
vigorous exercise, by varying his sedentary pursuits with manly
sports, and out door pleasures, he kept it in check for a time.
He knew when it obtained the mastery, and although he availed
himself of all the resources of medical skill, proceeded to set
his house in order and finish his earthly work.

Industrious to the last, his physician and friends found him
always among his papers and books, at work himself, or dictat-
ing to the willing hand which divined his every wish. They
always found the ready welcome, the cheerful word.

He spoke of death o.s he would speak of a journey, regret-
ting it for the sake of his young and devoted wife, of his child,
who would never know a father's love, but for himself willing
that '^God's will be done." On the 12th of December, 1859,
just as the wintry day was closing, he peacefully closed his
eyes upon the scenes of earth and the faces of those he loved,
and breathed out his life in one farewell sigh.

"When frail nature can no more,
Then the spirit strikes the hour,
My servant. Death, with solving rite,
Pours finite into Infinite."

Those very characteristics which gave Masonry such a hold
upon the imagination and heart of our friend, inclined him to-
ward those religious denominations which have an historical
association. He believed that through the established church,
from the glorious company of apostles and martyrs, an in-
fluence had descended, especially powerful for the regeneration
and sanctification of men. Though he did not live to receive
from the hands of the venerable Bishop confirmation and com-
munion, he died a Christian, in the hope and promise of a
happy immortality.

That Dr. Hunt was appreciated in the community which he
had served in such various capacities, was evidenced by the
mournful throng which followed his remains to their last rest-

1867J ]^^^ Warren Hunt 45

iug plac€. High and low, rich and poor, native and foreign,
horn, mingled in that solemn procession. Beside the com-
panion of his early youth they laid him down to his long
slumber, and over his dust was heard the voices of brothers in
aims, speaking, ^'Kest to his ashes, and peace to his soul."

The chair appointed Mr. Draper, Prof. Carr and Judge
Atwood a committee to report suitable resolutions, who,
through their chairman, submitted the following, the adoption
of which was moved by Prof. Conover :

^'Resolved, That we have heard with deep regret the death
of Dr. John W. Hunt, one of the corporate menabers of this
Society, for the past six years its Recording Secretary, and al-
ways prominent among its friends and contributors.

''Resolved, That in the death of Dr. Hunt we feel sensibly
the loss of an earnest co-worker in the field of historical and
statistical research and collection, and a friend of his race,
whose varied sphere of usefulness in society will long remain
unoccupied, and that we tender to his bereaved family our
heartfelt sympathies and condolence.

''Resolved, That in respect for the memory of our late la-
mented associate, Dr. Hunt, the Society do now adjourn, and
that the Secretary be directed to furnish a copy of these pro-
ceedings to the family of the deceased.''

Judge J. P. Atwood then rose and said :

Mr. President : There is silence through all the house. The
doors swing slowly to and fro. The windows are darkened,
and the mirror gives back its images in a dim mysterious light.
The knocker on the door is muffled, and the soft, slow step
scarcely scares the cricket, enticed away from, his home be-
neath the hearth by the nocturnal seeming of everything
around. The voices of the grate are hushed and the fire bums
with a purer and a serener glow. The half spoken words strike
harshly on the ear, and awaken echoes on every hand. All is
strange, mysterious and awful. Death is here.

46 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

John Warren Hunt was a remarkable man. Few even of
ills associates knew him. He was reserved and taciturn. At-
tentive to his duties and domestic in his habits, he minsjled
but little with the multitude in places of public resort. Ex-
tremely temperate, and but little given to convivial pleasures
and amusments, he was seldom seen at the festive board. He
was eminently reflective and inventive. He was ever busy and
ever thoughtful. 'No rust corroded his mental machinery, nor
enervated the native vigor of his mind.

Dr. Hunt was peculiar. His every taste and aspiration wa»
marked with a significant individuality. Every act, whether
public or private — every production of his pen — every one of
the many objects of his benevolence — his weightier and his
lighter works — the friends whom he chose for associates — ^his
home — his library — the fittings of his office — even the gems of
art which adorned his laboratory of taste, all spoke his idiosyn-
crasy. The objects of his ambition were alike the objects of his
taste. Whatever he sought to attain lay beyond pleasant fields,
which it seemed to him he would like to traverse, for the treas-
ures which he could gather on the way. If he should fail to
accomplish all that his ambition might prompt him to under-
take, the expended effort and labors would not prove a fruitless
sacrifice. He gathered as he went — he secured what he ac-
quired— he husbanded the harvest before the seed had fallen
to the ground, or been scattered by the merciless wind.

The past was fresh and green to him. E'o vices had vitiated
his memory; no half buried wrongs rose up between him and
the precious memories which cluster along the pathway of life,
far back to the spots hallowed by scenes of early childhood,
and the curiously happy day of youth — and turned them all
to hissing serpents, which he might not look upon. He liked
to dwell in the past — \^p live over the events and incidents of
his own life; and to linger in the sacred shadows of ages, and
decipher the inscriptions on the monuments of Time, which tell
the epochs of the world.

The present was to liim propitious and satisfactory ; the fu-
ture a great battle-field, whereon victories were to be achieved

1607] ]^^^ Warren Hunt 47

or lost. Glorious trophies awaited there the faithful, the hon-
est, the sagacious, and the brave. He looked on the objects
dimly seen in the morning twilight with a philosophical eye.
Experience had taught him to sack no untaken Troy.

With almost prophetic faith, he believed in the realization
of all he hoped for, and felt that no anticipation could turn to
ashes on his lips.

He was cautious and deliberate in study, and indefatigable
in research and investigation. His opinions were not hastily
formed, and seldom changed. They were conclusions wEich
he had wrought, and were with him as inflexible as truth.
Those who thought him dogmatical, were strangers to that con-
\ iction which is the result of perfect comprehension.

Dr. Hunt had not passed the siunmer of life. The flowers
stiU bloomed about him, and gave their incense to the ap-
proaching autumn. The fruit had scarcely begun to ripen on
tlie bended bough, and yet he was stricken, and he fell.

" The good die tifst;

While those whose hearts are dry as summer dust,
Burn to the socliet."

Our friend died where he most loved to live — in the quiet
seclusion of his own home. Those whom he most cherished,
watched and guarded him e'en to the dark valley, and there
left him only because they could go no farther. The fair yonng
hand which but yesterday he held in his at the altar, smoothed
the pillow of the dying man. The eyes in which he had found
encouragement and sympathy looked in his as they closed in
that sleep which knows no earthly waking. Friends whom he
had proved in life, were with him in death, and bore him ten-
derly to his last resting place.

Sad, sad indeed, is tliis event to her whose life-destinies
were linked with his by ties which now bind her to the spirit
world. I would not intrude with words of condolence upon the
sacred reverie of that widow, weeping with her orphaned child
beside the fountain, where the sUver cord has been loosed and
the golden bowl been broken. Her sorrow is too sacred for the
ministrations of human consolation. From the wounded heart

48 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

will go forth an aspiration for that solace which the world with
all its kindness, and all its henevolence', cannot give. She will
seek and obtain from a higher source, that purer illumination,
of which human reason is but the reflection. Mr. President^
I second the resolutions.

The resolutions as reported, were then unanimously adopted ;
after which, on motion of S. V. Shipman, Esq., copies of the
eulogies just delivered, were requested for the archives of the
Society.

Gov. Louis P. Harvey

At a special meeting of the Executive Committee, Tuesdays
evening. May 13th, 1862, Gen. David Atwood rose and said:

Mr. President and Gentlemen of the State Historical Society:

"In the midst of life we are in death."

The people of this State, have, of late, been most fearfully
admonished of the great truth contained in this sentence. In
consequence of the war that necessarily exists in our beloved
country, to put down a desparately wicked rebellion that has
sprung up in one portion of the Union, every loyal State has
been called upon to make the sacrifice of some of its best
and bravest citizens. Of late, Wisconsin has contributed her
full share to the roll of honored dead, which is made up with
the names of the noble men who have fallen in dreadful con-
flict. Oflficers and privates in whose veins flowed the best
blood of our State, have fallen willing victims of this war —
\^hose friends in almost every neighborhood of the State, have
been suddenly called to mourn their loss, and who, in their
affliction, have received the warmest sympathies of the whole
people of the State.

But a greater and sadder calamity has fallen upon our people
a^; a State, in the loss of a citizen who occupied a position in

1867] Louis p. Harvey 49

the civil walks of life! The chosen head of the Common^
wealth, Louis P. Harvey, is dead! Death has snatched from
our midst, the beloved statesman and friend, who filled so ably
and satisfactorily to the people, the Executive Chair of this
State!

In bringing to the notice of this Society, the death of this
distinguished fellow citizen, and of discharging the duty
assigned me, of preparing a brief sketch of the life and public
services of Governor Harvey, I feel that I have assumed a
heavy responsibility; but with the limited knowledge I pos-
sess, I will put in form such record of the events of the life of
our friend, as I can, that they may find permanence in the
proceedings of this Society, of which he was an honored and
most active member. I shall confine myself principally to a
plain recital of the prominent events in the life of our departed
Governor, most of which are entirely familiar to those present ;
but they may prove of interest to future generations who may
be in search of facts connected with the history of the State,
and of its more distinguished citizens, in its early years. It is
therefore, more for the benefit of the future inhabitants of
Wisconsin, than the present, that I submit this paper to the
Society.

Louis Powell Harvey was bom in East Haddam, in the
State of Connecticut, on the 22d day of July, in the year 1820.
We have little or no knowledge of his early boyhood. Of hia
parents we know but little; but understand that they are both
most exemplary and Christian people, and early instilled into
the minds of their children the importance of cherishing cor-
rect principles and of pursuing an upright and pure life. And
in their example they illustrated to their children the beauties
of the principles they taught in their own daily walk. These
parents survive the son, and now reside in S'hopiere in this
State. They have but one child left, a son, now residing in
Chicago.

The parents of Governor Harvey were not wealthy, and at
an early day the young son felt that it was necessary that
he should be the artificer of his own fortune. In 1828, when

50 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Louis was eight years old, his father removed with his family
to Strongville, Cuyahoga County, in the State of Ohio. This
was, at that time, the Far West. Ohio was then young and
vigorous — just the place for a young and vigorous intellect like
that possessed by young Harvey to expand and mature.

In 1837, Mr. Harvey entered the Freshman class in the
Western Keserve College, located at Hudson, Ohio. Here he
pursued his studies for something over two years, with, emi-
nent success, when, on account of ill health, he was compelled
to leave the Institution. He deeply regretted, in his whole
after life, the necessity that had prevented his completing his
collegiate course.

Concerning his college days, I cannot do better than to adopt
an extract from the remarks of Rev. Mr. Brown, at a meeting
in La Crosse, a few days ago. Mr. B. was a class-mate in
college with Mr. Harvey, and thus speaks of him:

^'As class-mates and members of the same literary societyj
and boarders in the same family, our acquaintance was of the
most intimate kind. I can bear testimony to his early charac-
ter, that it was without a stain. He was a noble youth. With
brilliant talents, good scholarship, and pleasing manners, he
became a favorite among his fellow students. Impulsive in
temperament, of unbounded wit and humor, yet chastened by
Christian principles. He possessed that rare quality of true
nobility, a promptness to retract an error or confess a wrong.
When a sharp word or sally of wit had wounded the feelings
of a fellow student, I have seen him repair to his room, and
with a warm grasp of his hand, and a tear in his eye, say:
^Brother, forgive me, if I have hurt your feelings P "

On leaving college, the active business of life commenced
with Mr. Harvey. He started out as a teacher; and we first
hear of him, in JSTicholasville, Kentucky, where, for a year or
two, he had charge of an Academy. In a short time, however,
he obtained a situation as tutor in Woodward College, Cincin-
nati, where he remained some two years, giving complete satis- '
faction in this capacity.

1867] Louis p. Harvey 5 i

We are indebted to Judge A. L. Collins, an old resident

of this State, for a letter referring to Mr. Harvey's first ap-

pearan<?e as a public speaker on political matters, and of the

circumstances of his coming to this State. Judge Collins

writes :

Madison, May 2, 1862.

Gen. Atwood:

Dem* Sir — In compliance with your request, I most cheer-
fully give you a short account of my early acquaintance with
our late lamented Governor Harvey, whose sudden and mel-
ancholy death has brought the -State into mourning.

My acquaintance with Gov. Harvey commenced in Ohio,
in the year 1840. During the memorable campaign of that
year, I was occasionally engaged in public speaking in behalf
of the Whig cause and its party. On one occasion, in the
month of October of that year, while fulfilling an engagement
at Strongville, Cuyahoga county, Ohio, I met and was intro-
duced to Mr. Harvey, who was spending a season with his
father, a highly esteemed and worthy man, residing at that
place, and who, I believe, is still living at Shopiere, in this
State, though I have not had the pleasure of meeting him since
I left Ohio, in 1842.

Pleased with young Harvey's appearance and modest de-
meanor, and discovering (which no one could fail to discover),
"signs of promise" in him, and full of good sound reasons for
the Whig faith that was in him, I was desirous of introducing
him to the stump and to the public, which I felt he would,
please and enlighten. After some considerable persuasion he
consented to accompany me to Brunswick, in Medina county,
where I had accepted a caJl to address a meeting within a few
days from that time. At the appointed time we met and pro-
ceeded to Brims wick. The meeting was large and enthusiastic,
as was characteristic of Whig meetings in that campaign. Mr.
Harvey preferred to make the opening speech, and did so. I
was only happily disappointed in the effort. It was his maiden,
speech, and, I need hardly add, that he made not only a bril-
5

5 2 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

liant and beautiful speech — one calculated to arouse the people
— but a profoundly doctrinal one, instructive and suggestive to
men of intelligence of riper years. Certainly, I felt happy
on his account, for his perfect success, and proud myself of the
honor of having been instrumental in bringing out a star.

From this place Mr,, Harvey accompanied me to several
other gatherings, large and imposing, during that campaign,
and made several speeches, and in every instance acquitted him-
self admirably, and won for himself a decidedly enviable repu-
tation.

An intimacy from this time, sprang up betwixt Mr. Harvey
and myself, and in the following summer, 1841, I visited and
traveled through Wisconsin. Mr. Harvey remained at Strong-
ville. On my return to Ohio, having determined to remove
to Wisconsin, he resolved to comje out with me, and we agreed
to come together to Madison in the autumn of that year; but
circumstances prevented my getting ready to come that fall.
DBut Mr. Harvey having no impediments in the way, came on,
and finding greater inducements to settle in Kenosha (then
Southport), took up his residence there, and engaged in teach-
ing for a time, in which he was entirely successful. For about
six years he remained at S'outhport, during which time or a
part of it, he was Post Master, and for many years of the time,
he edited the 8outhport American, a sterling and able advocate
of Whig principles — a more dignified, straightforward and re-
liable journal than the Southport American, was never pub-
lished in Wisconsin.

From the time when Mr. Harvey's connection with the
American ceased, you have been familiarly acquainted with
hie life and character — political and private^ — will do him
ample justice, and I will not intrude upon your province of
giving his history for record. Justice to my own feelings on
this occasion, however, will not allow me, in conclusion, to say
legs, than this, that, added to Governor Harvey's rare qualifi-
cations of head and heart, was that of courage to he honest and
do right. Men of that character, among politicians, are rare.
Indeed, good men oftentimes fail in this particular. In these

1867] Louis p. Harvey 53

times of political strife and official delinquency, tlie element of
bravery, in the sense I nse it, too often wanting — and when
we find the elements of talent, patriotism and nwral couraga
combined, as in Governor Harvey, we may safely say, when
he falls, "verily a great man has fallen."
Yonrs^ &e.,

A. L. Collins.

In the fall of 1841, Mr. Harvey turned his steps in a
westerly direction, and made his first stop at Kenosha (then
Southport), in this state. Of his career at that place, we must
allow Col. Frank, of the Kenosha Telegraph, who was then,
and has ever since been, an intimate friend, to speak:

'"lie came a stranger, without influential friends to aid him
and without capital, except a good character and a well culti-
vated mind, which are, after all, better foundations for a young
man to build upon than money.

"The first business in which he engaged here was teaching.
He found a building which had been erected far the purpose
of an Academy, but which had never yet been occupied for
educational purposes. He immediately hired the building, put
out advertisements, inviting students, and opened his school
on the 25th of December, 1841. His patronage was not large,
but all that could reasonably be expected, in view of the new-
ness of the town. In the summer of 1843, he took the editor-
ial charge of the Souiliyort American, a Whig paper which had
been established in the fall of 1841. He, however, did not re-
linquish the business of teaching, but continued his school.
Although this was his first attempt at editing a newspaper, he
displayed tact and ability in this new vocation. The American,
while under his charge was a lively and spirited paper. He
was an ardent politician, but never indulged in personal in-
vective, and was generally courteous in the discussion of politi-
cal differences.

"He was generous, genial, possessing an unusual flow of
humor; and it was, perhaps, these qualities, combined with

54 Wisconsin Historical Collections ivoi.v

others of more intrinsic worth, which rendered him popular
among all classes. As an evidence of the strong hold he had
on the favor of the people, during his early political career, it
mav be mentioned that after the expiration of his first year's
residence here, he was put forward annually by his political
friends, for some ward or town office. The contest at the polls
for these offices, was usually spirited, and conducted on party
grounds. It is a noticeable fact, seen by reference to the town
election returns for those years, that Mr. Harvey invariably
ran ahead of his ticket, and usually succeeded to an election,
even when his party was clearly a minority one.

^'Mr. Harvey, in early life, exhibited more than ordinary
talent as a public speaker, and possessed the elements of a
popular orator in a good degree. While engaged in the busi-
ness of teaching, he w^as zealous in his endeavors to organize
the young men of the town into Lyceums, for public discus-
sions, on the important topics of the day. Doubtless this early
practice of public speaking, was the means of giving him prom-
inence in after times, as a good debater in the State Senate,
and as an effective platform orator. His example in this re-
spect, is well worthy the imitation of all young men who aspire
to positions of influence and usefulness among the people.

'^As a friend of education, and the interests of our public
schools, Mr. Harvey was always ready to aid and give encour-
agement. In short, in all enterprises — educational, philan-
thropic or benevolent, he could always be coimted upon, to give
his influence and to speak a good word.

"Although Mr. Harvey, while a young man, was the ob-
ject of popular favor and applause, yet he preserved a gentle-
manly equanimity, and did not allow 'himself to become in-
flated with pride and conceit; nor did he give way to the
temptations which surround young men who are the subject
of flattering regard. He was a temperate man from principle
— abstaining from all intoxicating liquors. He was moreover
a religious man, and a church commimicant (Congregational).
There is much in the life of Gov. Harvey, while a young
man, that is instructive and worthy of example by the young

1867] Louis p. Harvey 55

men of the State. To a large extent it may be truly said, he
was a self made man. Before the age of 19 years, he was
thrown upon his own resources; by untiring industry and
perseverance, he achieved a reputation that will live in his-
tory, and command the respect and admiration of men in after
ag«s."

While a resident of Southport, Mr. Harvey received the ap-
pointment of Post Master. It was during the administration
of President Tyler; and it was but a short time before he
was called upon to adhere strictly to the fortunes of that cor-
rupt man, and to cordially support all the acts of his adminis-
tration, or lose his place as Post Master. To his honor Mr.
Harvey adhered to the honest convictions of his own mind
— to the real principles of his party — and the result was, his
removal from office after holding it a very short time.

In 1847, Mr. Harvey was married to Miss Cordelia Per-
rine, and in the same year he settled in Clinton, Rock
County, where he commenced trade. S'ome four years after-
wards he removed to Waterloo, (now Shopiere,) in the same
county, which place continued to be his residence during the
remainder of his life. Of his labors here, his old friend and
class-mate, Rev. Mr. Brown, thus speaks:

"Jle purchased tlie water power, tore down the distillery
that had cursed the village, and in its place built a flouring
mill and established a retail store, and exerted a great influ-
ence in reforming the morals of the place. A neat stone edi-
fice was built, mainly by his mTmificence, for the Congrega-
tional Church, of which he was a member."

Gov. Harvey leaves no family but his beloved wife. They
were blessed with one child, a daughter ; but wjien yet a child,
she was called from earth to a better world.

It was at this time, in 1847, that our acquaintance with
Gov. Harvey commenced, and it continued to be most inti-
mate during the balance of his life. Having given a brief
sketch of his private life, we will now make reference to the
more important events of his public career.

56 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Outside of his own town, the first appearance of Gov. Har-
vey in a public capacity, was as a member of the Convention
that framed the Constitution of our State. This Convention,
met at Madison, on the 15th day of December, 1847. It was
here that we first began to know and to admire Mr. Harvey
as a public man. He was among the youngest members of
that distinguished body of men, but in ability he had few su-
periors; and, in integrity, he was excelled by no one. He
took a leading position in moulding the organic law of the
State, and in all the discussions of that body he stood con-
spicuous as one of the ablest and clearest debaters in it; and
it comprised many of the best minds in the then Territory —
men, who, with him, have since held distinguished positions
in the State government, formed under the Constitution pro-
duced by that Convention.

We next hear of Mr. Harvey in a State capacity, as a Sen-
ator in our Legislature, to which position he was elected by
the people of the southern district of Rock County in the fall
of 1853, entering upon the duties of his office in the following
January. He was continued in this position for four years,
being re-elected in 1855. He was a leading spirit in that body.
Being familiar with State affairs and with the wants of the
people, and possessing great energy of character and purpose, his
ready talent found a congenial field in the Legislative Halls,
and the records of the Senate will show that he was most able
and efficient in the discharge of his duties as Senator. During
his last term, he was elected as the President pro tern., and
performed the duties of the position most acceptably.

In 1859, the people of the State called Mr. Harvey to the
responsible position of Secretary of State. In his office, per-
haps the most laborious and responsible of any in the State,
he discharged the duties with such energy, ability and scrupu-
lous regard for the public good, as to inspire the highest confi-
dence in him among the people of the State. As Secretary
and ex officio School Land Commissioner, he rendered the State
very great and valuable public services. Aa a member also,
of the Board of Regents of the Wisconsin University, he was

1867

Louis P. Harvey 57

ever found a true friend to that institution, and to the great
cause of education generally. No public man in the State has
evinced a greater degree of interest in educational matters, or
done more to elevate the condition of our public schools, in
proportion to his opportunities, than Mr. Harvey. He was
ever alive to the subject of educating the youth of the State,
and in his speeches and public acts, has shown his zeal in a
most effective manner.

In 1861, he was elected Chief Magistrate of the State by the
largest majority that has ever been given to a Gubernatorial
candidate, since the formation of our State Government. He
entered upon the duties of this high position on the 6th day of
January last, and fulfilled all the hopes and expectations of his
most sanguine friends, in the able and judicious manner with
which he performed the manifold and laborious, and oftentimes
intricate duties entrusted to him, until the 19th day of April
last, when, by a mis-step, he was lost to the people of Wiscon-
sin as a Governor and friend.

We have thus spoken of the official positions Governor
Harvey has held in the State. His name was prominently;
mentioned in connection with the office of Governor in 1855,
and again in 1857; and in the same years, he was frequently
mentioned in the Legislature, as a proper man to be elected a
Senator of the United States, though, in neither instance, did
be consider himself a candidate for those distinguished positions.
In 1854, his name was used in connection with the nomination
for Congress, with almost sure prospects of success, until he
forbid its use, and urged the name of Hon. C. C. Washburne
for that nomination. Mr. W. was largely indebted to Mr.
Haevey^s magnanimity in withholding the use of his name,
and to his zeal in urging that of his friend for -the first and
subsequent nominations as a member of Congress.

As a politician. Gov. Harvey was earnest, active and efficient.
He commenced political life as a member of the old Whig
party, when it Avas more especially under the leadership of
Henry Clay, and he was a most enthusiastic admirer of that
distinguished patriot and statesman. He continued to act with

58 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

that party until it was abandoned and the Republican party was
inaugurated, with which party he united with zeal, and for
whose advancement he labored with earnestness and efficiency
during the remaining years of his life. His political principles
were the result of honest conviction, and when he had once
satisfied his mind of the correctness of a principle, he could not
easily be swerved from it, but threw all the energy of his body
and mind into the work of its advancement. He was always a
true lover of freedom, and a sincere hater of slavery in any form.
When a member of the Whig party he belonged to that wing
that was most radically anti-slavery, and during the time of ex-
citement on that subject, was a firm believer in, and an advo-
cate of, the ^'Wilnwt Proviso,'' as it was called. In 1848 he
was a zealous advocate of the nomination of Henry Clay for
the Presidency, believing that distinguished man to be right on
the great question of slavery; and when his favorite was de-
feated, and Gen. Taylor was made the candidate, Mr. Har-
vey's political zeal in the campaign was almost entirely crushed.
Gen. Taylor living in the extreme S'outh, and being an ex-
tensive slave-holder, it was hard for Mr. Harvey to believe that
he would prove true to the principles of the ^^Wilmot Proviso."
As that principle was a predominating one in his mind, it W£i8
a long time before he could convince himself of the propriety
of voting for Gen. Taylor; and we are not sure that he did
overcome his scruples on that tsubject previous to lelection.
During this entire campaign, for the first and only one since
we have known him, Mr. Harvey was inactive. We mention
this incident, as it goes to show that in his political action he
was governed solely by principle, and did not drink of the cup
set before him by his party simply for the sake of party.

He was a man of great practical sense. He was not especial-
ly pre-eminent in any one direction, but he brought soundness
of views to bear upon all subjects; and he possessed a mind
that readily adapted itself to circumstances. In short, he was
a most ready man, either in council, with his pen, or upon the
speaker's stand. Wherever there was work to do, L. P. Har-
vey was always found availaJble and willing.

1867

Louis P. Harvey 59

Public speaking with Gov. Harvey seemed to be a gift of
nature. It is very rare that a man can be found, not trained in
some profession calculated to develop this talent, that was his
equal as a speaker. His manner was easy and graceful, his
language fluent and refined, and his voice clear and strong.
We have heard him speak on many occasions and on many
subjects, with preparation and without it, and we never heard
him when he did not do remarkably well, and adapt himself,
in a superior degree, to the time, the subject and the circum-
stances of the occasion.

Prominent among the characteristics of Gov. Harvey, was
his strict integrity. In all the heat of partisan strife, his
honesty of purpose was never questioned, by friend or foe. In
all the public positions he has held, he has proved reliable and
true to the trusts reposed in him. He was a member of the
Senate, during the Land Grant Session of 1856, when the
integrity of all the members of the Legislature was put to the
severest test, and he came out of that contest, with his gar-
ments clean, and with his character untarnished with the
remotest suspicion of being bribed. He was then a poor man,
and his influence was greatly needed by the mammoth cor-
poration, that was so munificent in its "pecuniary compli-
ments"; but the allurements of no prospective wealth had the
effect to swerve Mr. Harvey in the slis^htest degree from what
he believed to be the path of duty and right. His character
was pure, above suspicion.

As a friend he was cordial and sincere, ever ready to lend a
helping hand, wherever aid was deserved. As a citizen he
was ever foremost in all good works. Benevolent, kind and
obliging. Any community is blessed that can, claim such a
man. The community to which he belonged, embraced the
entire State of Wisconsin.

As has been before indicated. Gov. Harvey was a religious
man. He made no ostentatious display in this character, but
taught by example, the true way to live. His whole life waa
such an one, as the young may well strive to imitate.

6o Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

"Divinely gifted man
Whose life in low estate began ;
Who grasped the skirts of happy chance,
Bre'asted the blows of circumstance,
And made by force, his merit known ;
And lived to clutch the golden keys,
To mold a mighty State's decrees,
And shape the whisper of the throne ;
And, moving up from high to higher,
Becomes, on fortune's crowning slope
The pillar of a people's hope,
The centre of a World's desire."

Having thus adverted in an imperfect manner to some of the
more important events of Gov. Harvey's life, it remains sim-
ply to allude briefly to the sad manner of his death.

Immediately upon the receipt of the news of the battle of
S'hiloh, Gov. Hai'vey felt it to be his duty to repair at once
to the scene of action, and to do whatever was in his power to
alleviate the sufferings of the many loyal sons of Wisconsin
who had been wounded on that occasion. As the Chief Execu-
tive of the State, he exerted himself to his utmost, for a single
day, in arousing the people to contribute of such articles as
they could spare that would seem most likely to be needed
for the comfort of their wounded friends, and have them in
immediate readiness, stating that he would be the bearer of
them to the scene of that great and terrible conflict. The con-
tributions were liberal and of the right kind. On the follow-
ing morning, in the full vigor of the most perfect health, and
with most humane and benevolent motives, he left his home
duties, his family and comforts, to seek out the afflicted sol-
diers and carry comfort and consolation to them. His mission
was eminently successful. His presence among the troops had
an electric effect — ^giving them new life and new hope. A
friend, who accompanied him, thus writes of his labors:

"He had brought comfort, courage and substantial relief to
the men, who, after that awful Pittsburg battle, needed them
if ever men did. He had accomplished much more, in every
way, than any other maji that I know could have accom-
plished under the same circumstances. For his sauvity of
manner and energy of purpose had won from the authorities

1867J Louis p. Harvey 6i

privileges which were at first flatly refused, and his goodness
of heart had won the hearts of soldiers, while at all points of
our journey, he had made friends and admirers among those
who had never before heard of him."

As an indication of the great satisfaction his labors had
given to himself, we copy two brief letters, probably the last
he ever wrote, both dated on the 17th of April. The one to
his wife reads thus:

"PiTTSBUBG Landing, April 17, 1862.
"Deae Wife: Yesterday was the day of my life. Thank
Ood for the impulse that brought me here.

"I am well, and have done more good by coming than I
can well tell you.

*^In haste,

Louis."

In the other, to his private Secretary, he writes; "Thank
God for the impulse which brought me here. I am doing a
good work." He was doing a good work, and doing it well;
— and had finished what it seemed necessary for him to do,
previous to the dreadful accident that resulted in the loss of
his life.

Having bid adieu and God speed to all of our soldiers in
Tennessee, he had repaired to a boat in the harbor of Savan-
nah, to await the arrival of another that was soon expected,
which was to convey him and his friends to Cairo, on their
homeward trip. It was late in the evening, and the night waa
very dark and rainy. He requested the friends tHat were with
him to seek a little rest, while he would keep watch for the
expected boat, and arouse them in season to go on board.
The boat hove in sight — the Governor aroused his eompanions,
and all were making ready for a start in the direction of home.
Governor Harvey stood upon the boiler deck of the boat, near
the centre, in conversation with friends; and as the ex-
pected boat rounded to, — the bow touching the one upon which
he stood, he took a step, — as it w^ould seem to move out of
danger — but by a mis-step, or perhaps a stumble, — he fell

62 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

overboard between the two boats, into the Tennessee River,
where the current was strong, and the water over thirty feet
deep.

Although friends were near, the night being very dark and
rainy, it was impossible to render that aid necessary to save
him. Every thing was done that friends could do. A cane
was extended to him by Dr. Wilson, of Sharon, which was
grasped by the drowning Governor with such force as to
wrench it at once from the Doctor's hands. Instantly, Dr.
Clark, of Eacine, plunged into the river, and, making himself
fast to the boat, stretched out his feet in the direction of the
Governor, in the hope that he might reach them. Gov. Har-
vey passed within a few inches of the Doctor's feet, but failing
to reach them, immediately sunk, and passed under a boat
lying just below — ^never to rise again, alive!

Thus died the noble hearted Governor of Wisconsin, for
whom the whole people of the State most sincerely mourn.
For the last few days, he had been doing the greatest work of
his life; and just as he had finished it, was suddenly called to
give an account of this, and of all the work of his active life,
to the Great Judge, to whom we must all, sooner or later^
render an account of the deeds done in the body ! After liv-
ing such a life — at the conclusion of such a mission as the one
in which he had been engaged, and having performed ifs
requirements so well as he had done' — ^no one can doubt, but
he was fully prepared to meet his God in peace!

Let us fervently hope, the lessons we have had of the cer-
tainty of death, will not be lost upon us. May they make us
less fond of the pleasures of this world, so rapidly passing
away! May they cause those in high places of trust and
honor, to remember, now, in the days of health, manhood and
prosperity, that

"The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,

And all that heauty, all that wealth e'er gave,
Await alike th' inevitable hour —

The paths of glory lead but to the grave !"

1867] Louis p. Harvey 63

Hon. H. S. Orton, from the committee appointed to prepare
an appropriate preamble and resolutions, reported the follow-
ing, which were unanimously adopted:

"Whereas, It having pleased Almighty God, in his mys-
terious providence, to deeply afflict the people of this State, by
the sudden and untimely death of Louis P. Harvey, our late
honored and beloved Chief Magistrate — whose last act was one
of signal devotion to the highest interests of the State, and to the
common cause of our country and humanity: It is our melan-
choly duty as a Society, of which he was a most honored and
useful member, to record the virtues and excellencies of his
life as a valued legacy to the history of the State: Therefore

^'Resolved, That in the death of Gov. Harvey, the State
has lost a most able and faithful public officer, and an excel-
lent and respected citizen, universally honored and beloved
for his unwavering integrity, his philanthrophy and pat-
riotism, his firm adherence to principle and duty, and for
his private virtues as a man and a Christian. He has left
an example in both his public and private character which
may be safely and profitably imitated, and unreservedly com-
mended. In all his official relations, he has been faithful to
every trust, and rising above mere personal and partisan con-
siderations, he has in all things sought the public good. His
personal and official influence has always been used, freely and
cheerfully, in support of the benevolent and educational in-
stitutions of the State, and especially is this Society lastingly in-
debted to him for his enlightened appreciation of its objects,
and for his constant and unsolicited efforts in its behalf.

^^Resolved, That the memory of Louis P. Harvey is most
worthy to be cherished by the members, and preserved in the
annals, of this Society, and that we most heartily tender to
the friends and family of our deceased member 'and friend,
our warmest sympathy in an event so deeply afflicting, and for
them a loss so irreparable."

64 Wisconsin Historical Collections [toi.v

Canadian Documents

In 1862, application was made to Alpheus Todd, Esq., Librarian of tlie Legis-
lative Library of Canada, for transcripts of several ancient unpublished docu-
ments preserved by the Canadian Government, relating to early Wisconsin History
from 1690 to 1730. Mr. Todd most obligingly complied with this request, and
transmitted to the Society some forty pages of transcripts from the French orig-
inals— a service for which he justly deserves the lasting gratitude of the Society.

The late Prof. H. J. Turner, Principal of the Janesville French and English
Academy, very kindly consented to translate them for publication. In doing so
he frequently found it diflBcult to understand some of the ancient French idioms;
but it is quite apparent, that he succeeded exceedingly well in giving substan-
tially an accurate and faithful translation.

Prof. Turner was born in the City of New York, March 11th, 1809, and when
an infant, was taken by his parents to Bordeaux, France, where at the age of
seven, he was placed in a College conducted by the Jesuits, and graduated at
fourteen. His father was a sea-faring man, and commanded a vessel, and wished
that his son might become thoroughly versed in all that pertained to life on the
sea ; and desiring to impress on his mind the importance of first learning to
otep, as a preliminary acquisition to learning to command, sent him in a friend'si
ship on a voyage as a Cabin boy. Such was his proficiency, and his devotion to
his new pursuits, that at the age of nineteen he was the owner and commander
of a large vessel of his own. He continued to follow the sea for several years.

He at length engaged in teaching — first in New York City, and then in Utica,
where he met with marked success as an instructor of youth, and especially in-
the French language, of which he possessed a thorough and critical knowledge.
Loving change and excitement,- he finally removed to Wisconsin, first locating at
Sauk City, and subsequently at Janesville — at both which places his French and
English boarding school was largely patronized, and highly appreciated. After
an illness of two weeks. Prof. Turner was called from his useful labors, Nov.
24th, 1864, in the fifty-sixth year of his age. He had few superiors as a teacher,
and was an accomplished Christian gentleman.

These Canadian Documents thus procured, and translated by one so competent,
follow in their chronological order, and will be found to reflect much new light
on portions of our earlier Wisconsin history hitherto involved in doubt and ob-
scurity. They not only furnish some important official data relative to DeLou-
vigny's expedition against the Foxes in 1716, but give us some account of the-
subsequent expedition against the same war-like tribe by the Sieur De Villiers,
in 1730, — an expedition which has been, hitherto, singularly unnoticed by the
historians of tlie country.

To supply some intervening links in the interesting story of this desper-
ate war with the Foxes, we insert in their proper chronological order,
Charlevoix's account of De Louvigny's expedition; and two papers on De
Lignery's expedition against the Foxes, in 1728-one written by Father
Ci-espel, who was an eyewitness, and the other an official account fur-
nished to the French government procured from the archives at Paria

1867] Canadian Documents 65

by the late Gen. Lewis Cass, while serving as the American Minister there,
and by him communicated to Gen. W. R. Smith, of our State.

We also append a traditionary account of Sieur Marin's expedition against the
Foxes, in March, 1730, written by the late Wm. J. Snelling, a son of Col, Josiah
Snelling, of the Army. He was born Dec. 26. 1804, spent three years at West
Point, and repaired to Fort Snelling, his father's post on the Upper Mississippi,
and passed seven years in that frontier region, in company with hunters, trap-
pers and Indians. "A man," said Mr. Snelling, "must live, emphatically live
with Indians ; share with them In their lodges, tlieir food, and their blankets,
for years, before he can comprehend their ideas or enter into their feelings."
Thus he did, before he wrote his Interesting worlj, now rare. Tales of the North
West; or Sketches of Indian Life and Character, published in 1830, and in which
appeared the traditionary sketch of the Fox war, which he has apparently given
substantially as he received it from the Indians. A wrifer in the Literary
World declared that it was during Snelllng's long frontier residence that he
gained a familiarity with the Indian character and customs most remarkably
displayed In his work ; and Catlin, the well-known Western trave-er and Indian
chronicler, pronounced the book to be the most faithful picture of Indian life
ever written. Mr. Snelling, a man of real genius, a wit and a scholar, died at
his residence, at Chelsea, near Boston, Dec. 24th, 1848. Had he not been a
victim of an appetite which has beclouded many noble minds, he would have been
one of the brightest ornaments of American literature. His satire poem, "Truth,"
has been represented by good judges as Instinct with the genuine fire of genius.

Some notice of De Louvigny, Perrot, De Lignery, De Beaujeu, Marin, Du Buis-
Bon, De Villiers. De Noyelle, and St. Ange, who figured so prominently, as these
documents show, in the early Wisconsin military expedition, seems to be neces-
sary ; and such a paper, prepared from a careful review of the New York Colonial
Documents, and valuable historical writings and annotations of Dr. E. B. O'Cal-
laghan, Mr. J. G. Shea, Rev. B. D. Nelll, and others, is appended to the- series.

L. C. D.

SIEUR DE LOUVIGNY'S EXPEDITION TO MACKINAC.

[Extract of a letter from M. De Frontenac to the Marquis De Seigne-
lay, November 12th, 1690, relating to the exploits of Sieur De Lou-
vigny.]

M. De Seignelay:

My Lord — Althougli Sieur De Limonet has given you a
pretty exact verbal description of tlie matters I had confided to
his charge, I think it my duty to send you a duplicate of the
dispatch that he was obliged to throw into the sea, in order
that you may still better ascertain the extent of our wants, and

66 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

the result of the affairs of this country at the time of his de-
parture.

You will see with how much reason and foundation I feared
the conclusion of the treaty of the Outaouas with the Iroquois,
and the precautions I was taking to prevent its accomplish-
ment. I fortunately succeeded. I dispatched, in the month
of May, Sieur De Louvigny, of La Porte, a half -pay captain,
■whose valor and prudence were known to me, with a detach-
ment of 170 men, Canadians and Indians, with a large amount
of presents. I also sent with him Sieur !N"icolas Perrot, an
inhabitant of the upper part of this country, who, by the long
practice and knowledge he has of the disposition, manners and
the languages of all the nations of the upper part of this coujl-
try, has acquired much influence among them. They arrived
just in time at Missilimakinac, so much so that if they had de-
layed eight days longerj the ambassadors of the Outaouas would
have been gone to the Iroquois, returning to them all the
slaves and prisoners they had, concluding thus definitely their
treaty and their alliance. Matters shortly bore another aspect.
They had no sooner learned that their ancient father had re-
turned, with the same feelings of friendship that he had always
had for them, than they exclaimed that they wished to come
down and see him once more, being convinced that he would
not abandon them, and leave them at the discretion of the
enemy.

The conspiracies and intrigues of those who were most in
favor of the English and the Iroquois were promptly quelled,
and the Outaouas prepared to descend in large numbers, and
with much peltry, as you will learn hereafter.

Sieur De Louvigny very dexterously made' use of a fact
which occurred during the march of our people, to show all these
nations that the French were not as much discouraged as they
had been persuaded they were, and that he had resolved that
his conduct would be quite opposite to that of those in
previous years.

Having met thirteen canoes with Iroquois, at sixty leagues
from Montreal, who endeavored to oppose his passage, he cap-

1867] Canadian Documents 67

tured nine of them, killed more than thirty men, and wounded
as many. He took four prisoners, two women and two men,
one of whom was taken to Missilimakinac and given to the
Outaouas, who burned him and ate him, to show that they de-
sired no peace with the Iroquois; the other was given to me.
I delivered him into the hands of the chief I brought back
with me from France, whose name is Oreaoue"^, to dispose of
him as he should wish. One could not believe what effect this
confidence has had in his feelings.

You will see, my Lord, all the details of this action, in a
very exact and circumstantial relation, I have caused to be
made of all that has taken place here since the departure of
the vessels last year. The Sieurs De Louvigny, D'Hosta and
La Gemeraie have distinguished themselves very much in
itt

SIEUR DE LOUVIGNY'S PETITION AND DEFENCE

To our Lords of the Sovereign Council of Quehec:

Louis De la Porte, Sieur De Louvigny, Captain of In-
fantry, and Second Lieutenant of a Ship of War, humbly
prays that you will please examine and take notice of the
request presented by him to my Lord Lieutenant, which goes

*OuTBEOUATi, Otherwise called by the French Giund Guedle, or Big Mouth —
whose name La Hontan calls Grangcla by merely Latinizing the French.
He was an Onondaga, and his manly and magnanimous speech to Gov. De La
Baree, in 1684, has placed him in the front rank with Logan and Red Jacket,
as a forest-bom Demosthenes. L. C. D.

tOf this fight and two of its actors, we may add, that on the 2d of June,
1690, when three leagues above a place called Les Chats, the French dis-
covered two Iroquois canoes some distance from them ; when Sieur Db Louvigny,
after having sent out a party of thirty men in three canoes, who were fired
upon by the Iroquois in ambush, and four Isilled on the spot, now Joined by
Sieurs D'Hosta and Db La Gbmbrayb, led on some fifty or sixty men, ran over-
land, attacked the enemy in their ambuscade, and forced them to a precipitate
embarkation in their canoes, with the loss indicated in the narrative.

Sieur D'Hosta, it would appear, was at the burning of Schnectady in Feb-
ruary, 1690; then served on this expedition under Db Louvigny, and aided In
defeating the Iroquois, when he returned to Montreal, and, in August, 1691,
was killed in the defense of Chambly.

Sieur Db La Gemerayb was serving as a Lieutenant at Fort Niagara when
that fortification was demolished in September, 1688 ; in 1690, accompanied
Db Louvigny and took an active part in fighting the Iroquois near Les Chata;
he led a party against the Iroquoisi In 1692, and had an engagement with
them at Long Sault on the Ottawa River ; and, in 1697-98. we find him in
command of Fort Frontenac. L. C D

6 . ' " '

68 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

to prove clearly, that the accusation made against him can
not be prejudicial to him, inasmuch as he only acted in the
service of the king, and for the good of the Colony, during
the time he served in Canada. The petitioner is vs^ell per^
suaded that you, our Lords, know the above stated facts, and
that in all the employments which he has had, our Lords the
Governors General have not complained of his conduct, which
is very clearly explained in his request, and proved by the
certificates that they have given him of it.

You know, my Lords, that he has been honored with several
commands from which, he retired with the approbation, not
only of his Generals, but of also of all the public To-day, not-
withstanding he is accused of having acted contrary to the
orders of his Majesty, during his command of the Fort of
Frontenac, where the petitioner hoped to reap more glory and
advantages than in any other place where he had been, on
account of what he had done for the glory of the King, and
the great advantage of the Colony.

The petitioner is accused of having negotiated with the
Iroquois Indians. He has never done it; and this crime can-
not be imputed to him, without a desire of wounding his
honor, tarnishing his reputation, and telling a falsehood. If it
is said that when Indians came to ask peace of my Lord the
Governor General, they stated that the petitioner had sold to
them goods at high prices, it is an expression made use of
by all nations, as they are in the habit of attributing the evil
or the good which occurs to them, to the Governors and Com-
manders of the posts where they are. They also have a
natural habit of always complaining of the dearness of mer-
chandize, if they were even sold at the same price as in
France. Persons who have frequented them are convinced of
this fact.

Although the Indians never acknowledge the benefits which
they have received, yet on this occasion there is an exception,
for these have acknowledged in the general council held to con-
clude the peace for which your petitioner has employed his
energies and his means, that they were under obligations to him

1867] Canadian Documents 69

for having assisted them in their need. The disposition of
these wild men, little accustomed to praise any one, suggests
reflection, and would suffice even to convince you, our Lords,
of the uprightness of the proceedings of your petitioner, who
to pursuade the notable men of the Iroquois nation to come and
ask peace of my Lord, the Governor General, and engage others
to bring their skins and fur to Montreal, has not spared any
effort, either in the knowledge which he has acquired during
the &ve years he has had the honor to command the Outaouas
or in all the voyages that he has made, using all the necessary
means to reach the end arrived at to-day, securing a solid
peace, which must give a new life to the Colony.

To give you an idea of the manner in which your petitioner
acted, he prays our Lords to consider that when he reached the
Tort Frontenac, according to the order of my Lord the Cheva-
lier De Calliere, the Iroquois gathered there to the number
of 600 men or more. They were very resentful on account of
the blow struck by the Algonkins and others, our allies, on
the Chaudiere River. They only thought of revenging them-
selves. Notwithstanding the parleys for peace they had had
during the war with my Lord the Count De Frontenac, and
continued during this apparent suspension of hostilities with
my Lord the Chevalier De Calliere, they were naturally in-
clined to war, as they were warriors; but this strong desire
was still more increased by the number of their wounded, who
are now at their homes, and whose condition stimulates their
brethren to vengeance.

If the petitioner had to answer judges who were ignorant of
the habits of the Indians, he would explain to them how dif-
ficult it is to captivate their minds, how much it is necessary
to expend to persuade them to carry out any plan, and how lit-
tle confidence can be placed in their words ; but, my Lords, you
are too much enlightened, and know the steps which have been
taken, the sums which have been expended to the present time
to obtain a peace so necessary to this Colony — all to no ef-
fect, although several embassies were received from the enemy.
You are acquainted with the perfidy of this nation, and the

70 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

examples which they have given in violating the most sacred
laws, by the destruction and cruel death of the ambassadors
sent to them by my Lord the Count De Frontenac, without
my undertaking to tell you of them, nor my recalling to your
memory the unheard of cruelties of these barbarians.

The petitioner has no desire, except that of explaining to our
Lords his behavior whilst he remained in Fort Frontenac, tak-
ing in consideration the knowledge he had of the utility of
peace and the great good which resulted from it, and that ac-
ijording to the insight he has of the politics of the Indians.

The petitioner who saw that this numerous party of Iro-
quois wished to attack the Algonkins on their hunting grounds,
from which, at the most, they were only sixty leagues distant,
and knowing that if they succeeded in their attempt, it would
destroy all the measures taken for peace, and entirely ruin the
commerce of Montreal, he proposed to some trusty Indians to
go down to Montreal, in order to inform my Lord the Governor
General, that the next spring they would go down in number
to listen to his voice.

The petitioner thought of this expedient to separate them,
and avoid the blow they were meditating; and he succeeded.
Two amongst them accepted the terms. With the assurance that
the others would not commit any act of hostility, he sent with
them a Frenchman to be witness of their actions on the route.

The petitioner had the honor to write and state to my Lord
the Governor General, the feelings of the Iroquois towards the
Algonkins ; he even took the liberty to tell him that he thought
it necessary to send some authorized persons to their village
to pacify their minds, and persuade them to go down to Mon-
treal, as they, according to his belief, were not disposed to do
it. The petitioner prays our Lords to notice that the effects
which followed were the result of his thoughts.

During the absence of the deputies the petitioner treated
those who remained near the Fort, in such a way as not to ex-
cite their ill-will. Extraordinary precautions were necessary,
inasmuch as news came of the loss of forty-two persons who
had been killed by -the Outaouas. The petitioner granted to

1867] Canadian Documents 7 1

three or four Indians at a time, permission to enter within
the Fort; he feasted them, gave them some of his own clothes,
powder, balls, bread and other provisions, he had bought for
his voyage. He even gave them some of the blankets from
his own bed, and some of his shirts; but as he had not suffi-
ciency to give to all those who wished to obtain presents, and
fearing also the exasperation of some of the more turbulent
spirits amoung them, he felt constrained to permit the officers
and soldiers to exchange some clothing they had with the Iro-
quois for elk and deer skins, of which they had an abundance.
Your petitioner had encouraged them to hunt these animals,
as much to prevent them from entering into the depth of the
woods, on account of the Algonkins, as to divert them from
hunting the beaver, which is the commerce they generally
carry on with the English.

These Indians believed what the petitioner told them, and
went down with a large number of loaded canoes to Montreal.
Judge, I pray you, my Lords, of the advantage the Colony has
reaped from the cares of your petitioner, and of those further
advantages it will receive hereafter, from the willingness of the
Iroquois to trade now with our Colony, not only on account of
the convenience of transportation of their effects by water, but
also on account of the market they have found for all kinds
of skins and furs — advantages they have not met with in "New
England, and for which this country is obligated to the peti-
tioner.

The return of the envoys was no sooner known, than the
petitioner sent some men to give advice of it on all of the hunt-
ing grounds, where he exhorted the Indians to remember the
promises they had sent^to my Lord the Governor General, and
order them to return from their hunt, and go down to Mon-
treal. They went, and you know, my Lord, the- result of the
steps of your petitioner, inasmuch as they went down, and
that they took with them to their villages, persons capable of
conciliating their minds, and inducing them to come and so-
licit peace from my Lord the Governor General. The peti-
tioner can say without dispute that matters have resulted as
he had intended them.

72 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

The petitioner cannot avoid acknowledging to our Lords,
that the Iroquois, feeling grateful for the kindness they had
received at his hands, presented to him and his officers, many
elk skins and other furs. You are aware, that no nation ex-
cels them in generosity, and that they have a sense of honor
on this point, which surpasses all other people; besides the
large quantity of peltry they had, which they thought they
could not transport, and upon which they placed but little
value, facilitated them in their liberalities. These presents
so justly acquired, have been sent without the precautions that
would be taken with articles obtained by unlawful means;
therefore, the petitioner confiding in the uprightness of his
proceedings, not anticipating that goods so rightfully his,
would be seized, did not endeavor in any way to send them
secretly.

What should not your petitioner fear after accusations as
strong as those which have been brought against him, if he was
not persuaded our Lords, of your justice, of your equity, and
of the faithful examination you will please make of the papers
which tend to his justification, exhibited in the request to my
Lord Lieutenant — transactions principally in a distant land,
wJiile living with Indians with whom he was obliged to conduct
himself according to the caprices and occurrences of the occa-
sion, or run the risk of losing very considerable advantages,
had he acted otherwise than he did. Relying upon that pene-
tration which characterizes you in the settlement of incidents
which occur in this Colony, his Majesty approves all your de-
cisions; and replying as your petitioner does, upon the same
penetration, and upon the equitable distinction you make in the
affairs of this l!^ew World, as compared with those which
might occur in France, added to the knowledge you have of the
conduct of him during the eighteen years that he has been em-
ployed in the service of this Colony, with pleasure and with gen-
eral praise, that he hopes from our Lords a favorable judgment.

Taking this into consideration, our Lords, please discharge
the petitioner from the accusation brought against him; order
that he may claim the skins and furs seized from him, and

1867] Canadian Documents 73

that they may be returned by the depositaries on an order
certified by him ; or, at least, that the skins and furs may be
immediately sold for the benefit of the one to whom Ihey may
be adjudicated; for if they should remain longer, they would
lose in value, either in the price, or for the want of care; and
that you will execute justice.

Signed: De La Porte Louvigny.

Compare with the original, remaining in the registry of
the Sovereign Council, by me King's Councillor and Secretary,
Recorder in chief. Undersigned.

Signed : Peijvbet.

In Quebec, November Gth, 1700.

SIEUR DE LOUVIGNY'S DISOBEDIENCE OF ORDERS

[Extract of a letter of Chevalier De Calli^res to the Minister, November
7, 1700, informing him of the judgment which had been rendered
in the affair of Sieur De Louvigny.]

My Lord: — I had the honor to write to you in my last, of
the 16th of October, that they were trying the case of Sieur
De Louvigny and other officers, for having acted against the
oiders of the Xing, and that I would inform you exactly of
the judgment that would be rendered in this affair.

It has been conducted in a manner which desei-ves that you
should have particular information of it, and that I should give
you an exact account of it from the commencement to the de-
cision, which has just been made by the Sovereign Council.

You have already learned, that last autumn I sent for Sieur
De Louvigny to command at Fort Frontenac, forbidding
him, according to the orders of the King, to carry on any com-
merce there. I was apprised of his violation of these orders
by some Indians of the Sault this spring. They told me they
had been stripped at that post, where they traded for their furs.

74 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

thereby depriving them of the means of paying their debts in
Montreal.

This news was confirmed to me a short time a'^terwards
by an advice that I had, that Sieur De Louvigny was send-
ing down several canoes loaded with skins; upon which I took
a detachment, commanded by Sieurs Clerin and De Chacor-
nacle, to go and attach them. It was punctually executed. I
afterwards had the furs put in the King's storehouse, causing
the store-keeper to give me an account of the same. I sum-
moned to my house the persons who had brought them down.
Mons. De Champigny arriving at this time from Quebec, and
seeing that I was commencing legal proceedings, told me that
it was an affair in his jurisdiction, having replied to him
that it was rather within mine, as it was a case of military jus-
tice, on account of the contravention of Sieur De Louvigny,
and the disobedience of the orders which I had given in con-
formity with those of the King. He answered, and asked if
I had not as much confidence in him as I had in my major,
adding that, if I desired it, he would prepare the case for trial
and adjudication.

Being desirous of acting in concert with me, this proceeding
obliged mo to let him conduct the affair, having no doubt but
it would be referred to me, and that both of us would judge
it in the Council of War; but the result was different, for M.
De Champigny went dovoi to Quebec and referred it to the
Sovereign Council, without advising me of the fact. I learned
it through Sieur De la Martiniere, who was appointed re-
porter, and who came and told me of it. I answered that I
thought that this affair would be referred to me, since I was
the competent judge of it; but having ascertained that it was
not their intention to do so, and wishing to avoid all discus-
sions and delays as the vessels were at the moment of their
departure, I advised my Lord Lieutenant of my willingness
to have the affair judged by the Council, as it was necessary
to make a prompt example, which would telT in this country
— ^remedy its disorders and prevent their ill consequences ; and
at last, that I might render to you an account of it.

1867] Canadian Documents 75

I have thought it mj duty, for the good of the service, to
be present at the rendering of the judgment, and to add to it
the orders and the necessary papers which prove sufficiently
the disobedience of Sieur De Louvigny and others; of which
I also here add his petition, shewing clearly the specious pre-
text he alleged to justify his conduct, wishing to convey the
idea that this commerce had contributed towards establishing
the peace with the Iroquois; whereas, on the contrary, it de-
layed it, by furnishing the enemy with necessary articles, and
came near preventing them from coming to see me.

I have remarked that this trial was defective, inasmuch as
no inquiry had been established against the merchants who
furnished the merchandise, nor against those who secreted the
remainder of the furs, which could not be seized ; nor has there
been any established against those who brought the merchan-
dize to Fort Frontenac, although they had the testimony of
one of the witnesses.

The Council has at last referred Sieur De Louvigny and his
accomplices to the King; also tlie trial which they have had.
This was done against my opinion, as you will see, my Lord,
by my advice enclosed among the papers of the Register of
the Sovereign Council, according to the extract which I add
here, although the opinion of their guilt was established, and
the furs confiscated for the use of the King, and that in order
to sell them to pretended merchants, who obtained them at
two-thirds less than their actual worth at the current price, as
you will see by the account that I shall send you.

If these kind of contraventions and disobediences remain
unpunished, it is very certain that it is useless to forward or-
ders to this country, since it is impossible to have them exe-
cuted on account of the indulgence these gentlemen have had
in finding the means to elude the punishment so -necessary to
stop the reckless violation of the orders of his Majesty.

It is incontestible, that the means adopted by the Sovereign
Council are very captious, inasmuch as the question was to
absolve Sieur De Louvigny and others, or punish them for
their disobedience; but it has done neither tlie one nor tHe

76 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

other with reference to annihilating my authority concerning
the orders I have given.

This is why I am obliged, my Lord, to pray you to make a
regulation which will decide to whom it will belong to take
cognizance of cases in which there will be a question of contra-
lention, especially on the part of the officers, when the orders
of the King will be addressed to me, or that I shall issue or-
ders for the good of the service of his Majesty. I could not
have them executed according to your intontions, if this au-*
thority remained any longer undecided, because I am happy
to preserve all the moderation you will desire until the King
has declared his will.

It is, however, to be regretted, that the Sieurs De Louvigny
and De la Perotiere have been so far blinded by interest as
to commit such a fault, having fulfilled their duty well here-
tofore, they deserve that the King should take it into con-
fiideration.

[Extract from a letter from Messrs. De Callieres and De Champigny to
the Minister, October '5, 1701, concerning the Sieur De Louvigny,
Major of the Three Rivers.]

We shall not fail to execute the orders he gives us concern-
ing the seizures of the furs of Sieur De Xouvigny, and to ad-
T3se the Sovereign Council that he has not been satisfied with
the judgment rendered in this affair.

M. Sieur De Champigny, however, hopes that when the
Coimcil will have explained the reasons for acting as it did,
his Majesty will not disapprove it.

It is a pleasure for us to learn that he has given to M. De
Xouvigny the company he had; but that which embarrasses
us a little, is, that this company having been given to Sieur
De Tonty through the promotion of Sieur De Louvigny to
the rank of Major of the Three Rivers, finds himself without
a company, although he is the oldest of the Captains on half
pay, three of whom have been made Captains on full pay this

1867] Canadian Documents 77

year. Biii as there is a vacancy made in a company through
the death of Sieur De Gratis, we are persuaded, my Lord, that
you will authorize us to pay the salary to Sieur De Tonty,
from the day that the Sieur De Louvi^y takes charge of his ;
and we pray you very humbly to send to us next year an
order by which Sieur De Tonty will be entitled to the charge
of the company, as it is not just that whilst he is now serving
his Majesty iiji the establishment which is being made in De-
troit, he should be deprived of a salary and a company.

His Majesty has made Sieur De Louvigny a Major on con-
dition that he would give to the widow of the deceased Sieur
De Grand Pre, heretofore provided with the employment,
the sum of 2000 li ;* but the money not having been received,
it could not be executed. However, as the salaries attached
to the rank have been sequestered on account of Sieur De
Louvigiiy's affair of last year, and ^^h^t jow have not paid
them back, his Majesty could grant to this poor widow, with a
large family of children, the revenue of those two years, which
amounts to lYOO li. We humbly pray that his Majesty will
do it.

DE LOUVIGNY'S PROJECTED EXPEDITION

[Extract of a letter from Messrs. De Vaudreuil and De Beauharnois,
November ]5th, 1703 concerning a proposition of De Louvigny re-
lating to an Expedition beyond Lake Superior.]

The Sieur De Louvigny, major of Quebec, has proposed
to us, my Lord, to go on an expedition beyond Lake Superior.
As his project is herewith i annexed, we beseech you to cause
an account to be rendered to you of it, and to tell us, my Lord,
your intentions. We will have the honor to say to you, that
the Sieur De Louvigny is a! very good officer, and capable of
directing well an enterprise.

*Li — an abbreviation for livre. a former French coin, equal to 20 sous or
18 14 cents. L. C. D.

78 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Origin of the Fox War

In the year 1700, the Sauks and Foxes were defeated in a contest with the
Sioux or Dakotahs and loways ; and, in May, 1712, we find them instigated by
the Iroquois, and led on by their brave and enterprising Chief Pemoussa,
planning the destruction of Detroit, then having only « small garrison of
thirty men, with M. Du Buisson as commandant. The French made the best
defence they could, and were happily soon joined by a large force of friendly
Indians, sallied out and surrounded their invaders, who were ensconced in
holes they had dug in the ground. Much severe fighting took place, and^
after nineteen days, the Sauks and Foxes escaped one dark and rainy night,
but were overtaken at Presque Isle, near Lake St. Clair, where, in the exagge-
rated French accounts of that day, in a desperate fight which ensued, thcj
lost a thousand men, women and children, and during the whole Expedition
two thousand. L. C. D.

DE LOUVIGNY'S EXPEDITION AGAINST THE FOXES

[Sieur De Louvigny's letter, thanking the Council for having granted to
him the Lieutenancy, and giving an account of his Expedition
against the Foxes, fi'om the 13th of March to the 13th of October.
1716.]

I have the honor to thank very humbly, the Council, for the
Lieutenancy of the King, which it has pleased them to grant
me, and I w'ill endeavor to fulfill my duty in such a way that
they will be satisfied with my services. I will also have the
honor to render to them an account of the expedition I have
made against the Foxes, from whence I returned the 12th of
this month, having started from here the 14th of March:

After three days of open trenches sustained by a continuous

1867] Canadian Documents 79

fire of fusileers, with two pieces of cannon, and a grenade
mortar, they were reduced to ask for peace, notwithstanding
they had five hundred warriors in the fort, who fired briskly,
and more than three thousand women; they also expected
shortly a reinforcement of three hundred men. But the
promptitude with which the officers, who were in this action,
pushed forward the trenches, that I had opened at only
seventy yards from their fort, made the enemy fear the third
night that they would be taken. As I was only twenty-four
yards from their fort, my design was to reach their triple oak
stakes by a ditch of a foot and a half in the rear. Perceiving
very well that my balls had not the effect I anticipated, I
decided to take the place at the first onset, and to explode
two mines under their curtains. The boxes being properly
placed for the purpose, I did not listen to the enemy's first
proposition; but they having made a second one, I submitted
it to my allies, who consented to it on the following condi-
tions :

That the Foxes and their allies would make peace with all
the Indians who are submissive to the King, and with whom
the French are engaged in trade and commerce; and that they
would return to me all the French prisoners that they have,
and those captured during the war from all our allies. This
was complied with immediately. That they would take
slaves from distant nations, and deliver them to our allies to
replace their dead; that they would hunt to pay the expenses
of this war; and, as a surety of the keeping of their word,
they should deliver me six chiefs, or children of chiefs, to
take with me to M. La Marquis De Vaudreuil as hostages,
until the entire execution of our treaty ; which they did, and I
took them with me to Quebec. Besides I have reunited the
other nations at variance among themselves, and h'ave left that
country enjoying universal peace.

I very humbly beseech the Council to consider, that this ex-
pedition has been very long and very laborious; that the vic-
torious armies of the King have been led by me more than
^ve hundred leagues from our towns, all of which has not been

8o Wisconsin Historical Collections [yoi.v

executed without much fatisfue and expense; to which I ask
the Council to please give their attention, in order that ;,hej
may allow me the gratification thej may think proper, as I
have not carried on any kind of commerce. On the contrary^
I gave to all the nations which were with me, the few beaver
skins that the Foxes had presented me with, to convince them
that in the war the French were prosecuting, they were not
guided by motives of interest. All those who served in the
campaign with me, can testify to what I take the liberty to tell
the Coimcil.

Signed: Louvigny.

At Quebec, October 14, 1716.

DE LOUVIGNY'S SERVICES IN THE FOX WAR

[M. De Vaudreuil's letter, dated Quebec, October 30, 1716, relative to
the services of M. De Louvigny.]

By my memorial of the 16th of this month, I informed the
Council of the manner in which the Sieur De Louvigny put
an end to the war with the Foxes.

I now feel it my duty to call the attention of the Council to
the merits of that ofiicer. He has always served his country
with much distinction ; but in his expedition against the Foxes
he signalized himself still more by his valor, his capacity,
and his conduct, in which he displayed a great deal of pru-
dence. He urged the canoes that ascended with him to make
all possible speed, and he obliged those in Detroit to accom-
pany him. He showed the Hurons and other Indians of that
place, that he was going to the war in earnest; that he was
not a trader, and he could dispense with their services. This
brought them back to their duty. But it was especially at
Michillimakinac, where he was anxiously expected, that his
presence inspired in all the Frenchmen and Indians a confi-
dence which was a presage of victory. Again; he made the

1867]

Canadian Docviments 8i

war short, but the peace which results from it will not be of
short duration.

I shall be obliged to dispatch him in the very cominenoe-
ment of next spring to return to Michillimakinac to confirm
this peace, embracing in it all the nations of the Upper Coun-
try, and to keep the promise he made to the chiefs of the Foxes
who are to come down to Montreal, that they would find him
at Michillimakinac. All these movements are not made with-
out great labor and many expenses, and I cannot omit saying,
that this officer deserves that the Council should grant him
some favor.

Signed : Vaudbeuil.

On the margin is written: "Approved by the Coun:;il, February 26,
1717.

Signed: La Ciiapelle."

CHARLEVOIX'S ACCOUNT OP DE LOUVIGNY'S EXPEDITION

Charlevoix, the historian of New France, has given us a
narrative of De Louvigny's expedition, which, from the vague-
ness of the date he assigned it, has been by subsequent writers
construed as having taken place in 1714, but a reference to the
original work will quite as well warrant the conclusion that it
was the year 1716 — ^which it really was, as De Louvigny's offi-
cial account, now first published over a hundred and fifty years
afterwards, conclusively shows. To preserve Charlevoix's ac5-
count in this connection, we give it by combining with our
own, the partial translation of it in Wynne's British Empire
in America, London, 1770, and in Smith's History of Wiscorir
sin:

The Out agamies,* notwithstanding the blow which they had
received in the affair at Detroit in 1712, were more exasperat-

•This was the Indian name by whlcLi the Foxes -were gcneralJy known, which
the French translated Lea Renarda. L. C. D.

82 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.t

ed than ever against the French. They collected their scat-
tered bands on the Fox River of Green Bay, their natural
country, and infested all the communications between the Col-
ony and its most distant posts, robbing and murdering travel-
ers; and in this they succeeded so vsrell, that they brought over
the Sioux to join them openly, while many of the Iroquois fa-
vored them clandestinely. In short, there was some danger of a
general confederacy amongst all the savages against the French.
This hostile conduct on the part of the Foxes, induced the
Marquis De Vaudreuil to propose a union of the friendly
tribes with the French, in an expedition against the common
enemy, who readily gave their consent. A party of French
was raised, and the conmiand of the expedition was confided
to M. De Louvigny, the King's Lieutenant at Quebec. A
number of savages joined him on Ms route, and he soon found
himself at the head of eight hundred men, all resolved not to
lay down their arms while an Outagamie remained in Canada.
Every one believed that the Fox nation was about to be en-
tirely destroyed, and so the Outagamies themselves judged,
when they saw the storm gathering against them, and there-
fore determined to sell their lives as dearly as possible.

More than ^ve hundred warriors and three thousand wo-
men, shut themselves up in a sort of fort,* surrounded by
three ranges of oak palisades, with a good ditch in the rear.
Three hundred men were on the route to reinforce them, but
they did not arrive in time. De Louvigny now attacked
them in form; he had two field-pieces and a grenade mortar;
the trenches were opened thirty-five toises [twelve rods and
three-quarters] from the fort, and on the third day he was only
twelve toises distant, when the besieged opened a heavy fire
upon the French. While De Louvigny was preparing to un-
dermine their works, the Foxes proposed terms of capitulation,
which were rejected. In a little time they submitted others:
First, That the Outagamies and their confederates should
make peace with the French and their allies: Secondly, That

*Gen. Smith adds : On Fox River, now known as the Butte dea MoriSj or
Hill of the Dead. L. C. D.

1867]

Canadian Documents 83

they should previously release all their prisoners: Thirdly^
That they should replace .the French whom they had killed
by slaves, whom they were to make prisoners from the distant
nations with whom they were at war: Fourthly, That they
should pay the expenses of the war by the products of the
chase.

De Louvigny pretended to his allies, to whom he distrib-
uted a few beaver skins presented to him by the Outagamies^
that he had consented to pardon the besieged on these condi-
tions; but he should deceive himself if he believed the Foxes
sincere. It was apparent to every one that they could not con-
ceal their dissimulation ; but he left them, and returned to Que-
bec, where it is certain that the reception his General gave him,
and the yet greater distinction that he received from the French
Court the following year, proved that he had already distin-
guished himself; that he had done nothing without authority;
and the sequel shows, that this command had not been given
with a knowledge of ;the cause. M. De Louvigny concluded
peace with the Foxes, having received from them six hostages,,
either chiefs or sons of chiefs, as a surety for the fulfillment of
their pledge to send deputies to Montreal, in order to ratify
the treaty there with the Governor-General. And this treaty^
which they had reduced to writing with De Louvigny,* con-
tained an express cession of the country to the French.

Unfortunately the small pox, which raged the following win-
ter in the Colony, and among the neighboring tribes, carried
off three of the hostages, who died at Montreal, and among
them the famous war chief Pemoussa. De Vaudreuil, fearful
lest the treaty should fail, hastened upon the ioo to Montreal,
and despatched De Louvigny to Michillimakinac, with orders
to execute the conditions accepted by the Foxes, and to bring
to Montreal the chiefs of that and neighboring tribes, together
with the ranger-deserters, to whom the king had granted a full
pardon.

De Louvigny set out at the close of May, 1717. One of the
surviving hostages, who had been attacked by the small-pox,.

Trobably referrlbg to a« eiigrostitd copy. L. C. I>.

84 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

with the others, and had lost an eye by it, was taken along,
that he might b' 5,r testimony to his people with what tender-
ness he and his companions had been treated. As soon as De
Louvigny arrived at Michillimackinac, he dispatched this one-
eyed chief to the Foxes, attended by two French interpreters,
with presents to cover the three dead hostages. They were
well received, smoked the calumet, and sang the songs of peace,
and after spending some days in grieving for the dead, they
met to listen to the hostage. He represented all matters in a
proper manner, and severely reproached the chiefs for not hav-
ing repaired to Michillimackinac.

The chiefs declared to the interpreters, that they were
very ,sensible of the kindness which the Governor General
continued to show to them; but excused themselves for not
having already sent deputies to fulfill the treaty, .and prom-
ised to comply with their word the following year, giving
this pledge in ^vriting;, adding that they would never forget
that they were indebted for their lives entirely ,to the clemency
of their good father, the Governor. The hostage then set out
with the interpreters, to rejoin De Louvigny, at Michillimack-
inac; but after traveling about twenty leagues, he left them,
eaying it was necessary he should return to urge upon his
people a (faithful compliance with th^ir pronxi^e. iTothing
further was heard from him. The Foxes failed to send
deputies to the Governor General, and all the fruit De Lou-
vigny reaped from this laborious journey, was bringing back
to the Colony nearly all the ranger-deserters, and engaging
a very large number of Indians to transport their peltries
to Montreal, in greater quantities than they had done for a
long while before. Gov. De Yaudreuil flattered himself for
a long time that the Foxes would send the promised deputies
to him; but he was only taught by the renewal of their old
conduct, that an enemy driven to a certain point is always
irreconcilable.

While the Foxes were discomfitted in many encounters,
they, on their own part, compelled the Illinois to abandon
their river forever; although after repeated defeats, it could

1867] Canadian Documents 85

scarcely be conceived that there remained enough of that
nation to form even a trifling village, yet no one ventured to

go from Canada to Louisiana, without taking the utmost pre-
caution against their surprises; and, it is said, that they had
formed an alliance with the Sioux, the most numerous Indian
tribe of Canada, and with the Chickasaws, the bravest nation
of Louisiana.

DEATH OF SIEUR DE LOUVIGNY

[Extract from a letter from the Bishop of Quebec, dated October i,
1725, announcing the death of Sieur De Louvigny.]

I was awaiting the arrival of the King's vessel to speak to
you of many things; but, O, good God! what news have wo
just learned! After a happy voyage as far as the shores of
L'Isle RoyaJ, those who managed her took their measures so
badly that they cast her away on the night between the 2Yth
and 28th of August, at two leagues from Louisburg, on a reef
of rocks, where she was entirely broken at the first stroke.
All on board perished ; not one soul was saved.

When the news reached here, it caused such dreadful con-
sternation, desolation and misery, that I cannot forbear recom-
mending to you several widows. Madame De Louvigny d^
serves, on account of the good services of her husband, that
you should continue to her and her two daughters the pensioai
you have settled upon him.*

♦With reference to this ship-wreck, we find the following in Charlevoix's
History of New France: On the night of the 25th of August, 1725, the King'i
vessel, The Camel, hound to Quebec, \ras wrecked near Louisburg, and not a
soul saved. M. De Chazel, who was sent to relieve M. Begon, Intendant of
Canada, M. De Louvigny, named Governor of Three Rivers, the same of
whom we have so frequently spoken in this history, Capt. De La Gess, the
son of M. De Rameza, who died the preceding year as Governor of Montreal,
together v/ith many officers of the Colony, Ecclesiastics, Recollects and Jesuits*
all periuhed there Milh their property. L. C. D.

86 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Renewal of the Fox War

In 1719, while three deputies of the Foxes were at Montreal, with assurances
of peace and good will, having surrendered all the prisoners they had taken, a
new source of uneasiness arose. A party of forty Foxes, Kickapoos and Mascou-
tins were out on a summer hunt, when a party of forty Illinois completely sur-
rounded them, probably while asleep, and killed one-half of them on the spot,
and captured the others. The Fox deputies asserted that the Illinois had at-
tacked them on several occasions during the last year. Gov. Vaudreuil urgied
pacific measures, and "that they must prevail with their allies, the Sacs, to
labor to that end." In a letter of the King, May 14, 1728, to Vaudreuil, he said:
"According to the intelligence his Majesty had received respecting the negotia-
tion of peace between the Illinois and Fox Indians, he had reason to believe
that it was on the eve of being concluded, and has been much surprised to learn,
not only that it had been broken off, but, still more, that Sieur De Beauharnois
had determined to make war on the Foxes ! His Majesty is persuaded of the
necessity of destroying that nation, as it cannot be kept quiet, and as it wiW
cause, so long as it exists, both trouble and disorder in the Upper Country; but
should have wished that such a step, the success whereof is problematical, had
been postponed until his order^ had been received. It is even to be feared, that
the project may not have been so secret as that the Indians have not been in-
formed of it. In this case, if they foresee their inability to resist, they will
have adopted the policy of retreating to the Sioux of the Prairies, from which
point they will cause more disorder in the Colony than if they had been allowed
to remain quiet in their village. Possibly even- the other nations, who have been
apparently animated against the Foxes, will be touched at their destruction, and
become more insolent should we not succeed. As the expedition is apparently
organized at present, his Majesty has been graciously pleased to allow the sixty
millions of livres demanded by the Sieurs de Beauharnois and Dupuy, for the
expenses of that war, news of the success of which he will be expecting with
impatience."

The following extract relative to Sieur De Lignery's expedition against the
Foxes, in 1728, is taken from the Voyages of the Rev. Father Emanuel Crespel in
Canada, edited by his brother Louis Crespel, and first published in French, at
Frankfort, in 1752, in a small 12mo volume of 135 pages— a copy of which is in
the library of our Historical Society; another edition in French was issued at
Amsterdam in 1757, and an English translation in I^ondon, in 1797. Of the author
we have no knowledge; he had probably died before the publication of his work
under his brother's auspices, who is represented as alike an artist and author.
The translation of this extract was made by Gen. W. R. Smith. L. C n.

1867J Canadian Documents 87

DE LIGNERY'S EXPEDITION, 1728

On the Seventeenth day of March, in the year of my depar-
ture from Quebec (1T26), M. De La Croix De St. Valier,
Bishop of that city, conferred upon me the degree of Priest,
and gave me shortly afterward a mission, or curacy, called
S'orei, situated south of the river St. Lawrence, between the
city of the Three Rivers and Montreal. I was withdrawn
from my curacy, where I had already remained two years,
and appointed almoner to a party of four hundred Frenchmen,
that the Marquis De Beauharnois had joined to eight or nine
hundred savages, of all manner of nations, but principally
Iroquois, Hurons, ^NTepissings and Outaouacs, to whom M. Pe-
««et. Priest, and Father De La Bertonniere, Jesuit, served as
almoners. These troops, commanded by Monsieur Lignerie,
were commissioned to go and destroy a nation called the Foxes,
whose principal habitation was distant from Montreal about
four hundred and fifty leagues.

We commenced our march on the 5th of June, 1728, and
ascended nearly a hundred and fifty leagues up the great river
which bears the name of the Outaouacs, and which is filled
with falls and portages We quitted it at Mataouan, to take
the one which empties into lake l^epissing; it is about thirty
leagues in length, and is obstructed by falls and portages like
that of the Outaouacs. From this river we entered into the
lake, the width of which is about eight leagues; and from this
lake, French river very soon conducts us to Lake Huron, into
which it empties, after traversing more than thirty leagues
with great rapidity.

As it is not possible for many persons to travel together on
these small rivers, it was agreed that those who first passed
should wait for the others at the entrance of Lake Huron, at a
place called the Prairie, and which is, indeed, a most beautiful
prairie. It is there that I saw, for the first time, the rattle-
snake, whose bite is mortal; none of our party were incom-
moded by them.

8 8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

The twenty-sixtli of July, being all re-united, I celebrated
Riass, wbich I had deferred until that time, and the next morn-
ing we started for Michillima, or Mi&sillimakinac, which is a
station situated between lalies Huron and Michigan. Although
we had a hundred leagues to travel, the wind was so favorable
that we arrived in less than six days. We remained there for
eome time, in order to repair all damages incurred at the por-
tages and falls; while there, I consecrated two flags and buried
several soldiers who had been carried off by fatigue or sickness.

The tenth of August we left Michillimackinac, and entered
lake Michigan. As we had been detained there two days by
the wind, our savages had had time to take a hunt, in which
they killed several moose and elk, and they were polite enougli'
to offer to share vnlth us. We made some objections at
iirst^ but they compelled us to accept their present, saying
that since we had shared with them the fatigues of the jour-
ney, it was right that they should share with us the comforts
which they had found, and that they should not consider
themselves as men if they acted in a different manner toward
others. This discourse, which one of our men rendered into
Prench for me, affected me very much. What humanity in
savages! And how many men might be found in Europe to
whom the title of barbarian might much better be applied than
to these inhabitants of America.

The generosity of our savages "merited the most lively grati-
tude on our part; already for some time not having been
able to find suitable hunting grounds, we had been compelled
to eat nothing but bacon; the moose and elk which they gave
us removed the disgust we began to have for our ordinary fare.

The fourteenth of the same month we continued our jour-
ney as far as the Detour de Chicagou, and as we were doubling
Cap a la Mort, which is about ^ve leagues across, we encoun-
tered a gust of wind, which drove ashore several canoes that
were unable to double a point in order to obtain a shelter ;
they were broken by the shock; and we were obliged to dis-
tribute among the other canoes the men who, by the greatest
good fortune in the world, had all escaped from the danger.

1867] Canadian Documents 89

The next day we crossed over to the FoUes Avoines,* in or-
der to entice the inhabitants to come and oppose our landing;
they fell into the trap, and were entirely defeated.! The fol-
lowing day we camped at the mouth of a river called La Gas-
parde. Our savages went into the woods, but soon returned
bringing with them several roebucks. This species of game
is very common at this place, and we were enabled to lay in
several days provisions of it.

About mid-day, on the 17th, we were ordered to halt until
evening, in order that we might reach the post at the Bay dur-
ijjg the night, as we wished to surprise the enemy, whom we
knew were staying with their allies, the Saquis, whose village
lies near Fort St. Francis. At twilight we commenced our
march, and about midnight we arrived at the mouth of Fox
Eiver, at which point our fort is built. As soon as we had ar-
rived iliere, M. De Lignery sent some Frenchmen to the
commandant to ascertain if the enemy were really ao the vil-
lage of the Saquis; and having learned that we ought still to
find them there, he caused all the savages and a detachment
of French troops to cross over the river, in order to surround
the habitation, and then ordered the rest of our troops to enter
the village. Notwithstanding the precautions that had been
taken to conceal our arrival, the savages had received informa-
tion of it, and all had escaped with the exception of four;
these were presented to our savages, who after having divert-
ed themselves with them, shot them to death with their arrows.

I was much pained to witness this horrible spect^vcle; and
the pleasure which our savages took in making those unfortu-
nate persons suffer, causing them to undergo the horrors of
thirty deaths before depriving them of life. I could not make
this accord with the manner in which they had appeared to
think some days before. I would willingly have asked them
if they did not perceive, as I did, this opposition of sentiment,

♦Wild Rice people, or McoumoiieeH.

tin Garneau's History of Canada, translated by Bell, we have this state-
ment: "The army passed Minhilimacinac August ]st, and that day lortnight,
reached Chicago [Green Baj 7] ; and Aug. IStt, a hody of Folles Avolnes were
found drawn up in battle anaj, on tue lake-board, having made common
cause with the Oiitagamies. They were encountered and signally beaten."

L C. D.

go Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

and have pointed out to them what I saw condemiiable in
their proceedings; but those of our party who might have
served me as interpreters were on the other side of the river
-and I was obliged to postpone until another time the satisfac-
tion of my curiosity.

After this little ooup de main we went up Fox River, w^hich
is full of rapids, and is about thirty-five or forty leagues in
length. The 24th of August we arrived at the village of the
Puants* much disposed to destroy any inhabitants that mdght be
found there; but their flight had preceded our arrival, and we
had nothing to do but to bum their wigwams, and ravage their
fields of Indian com, which is their principal article of food.

We afterwards crossed over the little Fox Lake, at the end
of which we camped, and the next day (day of St. Louis), al-
ter mass, we entered a small river which conducted us into a
kind of swamp, on the borders of which is situated the grand
habitation of those of whom we were in search. Their allies,
the Saquis, doubtless, had informed them of our approach, and
they did not deem it advisable to wait our arrival, for we found
in their village only a few women, whom our savages made
their slaves, and one old man, whom they burnt te death at a
slow fire, without appearing to entertain the least repugnance
towards committing so barbarous an act.

This appeared to me a more striking act of cruelty than that
which had been exercised towards the four savages found in
the village of the Saquis. I seized upon this occasion and
circumstance to satisfy my curiosity about that concerning
which I have just been speaking. There was in our company
a Frenchman who could speak the Iroquois language. I
entreated him to tell the savages that I was surprised to see
them take so much pleasure in torturing this unfortunate old
man — that the rights of war did not extend so far, and that so
barbarous an action appeared to me to be in direct opposition
to the principles which they had professed to entertain towards
all men. I was answered by an Iroquois, who in order to
justify his companions, said, that when they fell into the hands

"Winnebagoes.

186V] Canadian Documents 91

of the Foxes and Saquis, they were treated with still greater
cruelty, and that it was their custom to treat their enemies in
the same manner that they would be treated by them if they
were vanquished. * * *

I was about to give him some further reasons, when orders
were given to advance upon the last stronghold of the enemy.
This post is situated upon the borders of a small river which
empties into another called the Ouisconsin, which latter dis-
charges itself into the Mississippi, about thirty leagues from
there. We found no person there, and as we had no orders to
go any farther, we employed ourselves several days in destroy-
ing the fields, in order to deprive the enemy of the means of
subsisting there.* The country here is beautiful, the soil is
fertile, the game plenty and of very fine flavor ; the nights are
very cold, and the days extremely warm. In my next letter
I will speak to you about my return to Montreal, and of all
that has happened to me up to the time of my embarking for
France. -^ * *

Your affectionate brother,

Emanuel Crespel, Becollet.'f

Gen. Smith adds this comment in a note : ^^]^ot being aware
of any historical notice of this expedition, I was at first doubt-
ful of the truth of the relation; but through the kindness of
Governor Cass, I have obtained a full corroboration of the facts
of which Crespel speaks, in an abstract of an official report,
procured from the French archives. It is somewhat singular
to observe CrespeFs remark on the ^precaution' taken by a
body of nearly fifteen hundred men sailing in canoes, and
marching 450 leagues, to surprise a tribe of Indians; and it is
equally amusing to see what a horror he has at the instances
of cruelty in Indian warfare, and at the same tinae the cool-
ness with which he describes the utter destruction of the Vil-
lages and corn fields of the absent Foxes."

•"Neither the Outapamies nor their allies," says Garneau, "were any where
to be found, although the Canadians ascended Fox River, following their
track to its sources, and within thirty leagues of the Mississippi, burning
every horde, hut and plantation they found in the way." L. C. D.

tA monk of a reformed order of Franciscan Brothers — pious laymen who
devote themselves to educational and other useful labors. L, C. D.

92 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

ENTERPRISE AGAINST THE FOXES

[Prom Messrs. De Beauharnois and De Argemait, 1st September, 1728
to the French Minister of War.]

It having been signified to them that his Majesty wished that
they had awaited his orders before commencing this under-
taking: They answer, that the information which they
received from every quarter, of the secret wampums which
the English had sent among the nations of the Upper Country,
to cut the throats of the French in all the posts, and the war
parties which the Foxes were raising every day, did not
allow them to defer this expedition for a year, without
endangering the loss of all the posts in the Upper Country.

They learned with regret that the Foxes had fled before the
army had arrived in their country. They will do all they can
to prevent any results from this, and will attentively observe
all the movements which any of those nations who could
enter into the interests of the Foxes might make, so as to pre-
vent any surprise.

The Marquis De Beauharnois, by a private letter of the
same day, sends the instructions which he had given to M. De
Lignery for this expedition, and the letter which this officer
entreated to enclose in his despatches, and by which he
attempts to justify himself. This letter states, that he made
use of all his skill to succeed in the expedition; but it was
impossible for him to surprise the enemy, not being r able to
conceal from them, any further than the Bay, the knowledge
of his march.

He took at this post, before day-break, three Puants of the
Foxes, and one Fox, who were discovered by some Sakis
whom he had brought from Mackinac. These four savages
were bound and sent to the tribes, who put them to death the
next day. He afterwards continued his march, composed of
1,000 savages and 450 French,* as far as the village of the

*Gai'ueau says the force consisted of 450 French and 750 Indians ; Crespel
says 400 French and 800 or yoo Indians. L. a D.

1867J Canadian Documents 93

Puants, and afterwards to the Foxes. They all fled as soon
as they heard that wd were at the Bay, of which they were
informed by some of their own people, who escaped by swim-
ming. They captured, however, in the four Fox villages, two
women, a girl and an old man, who were killed and burnt.
He learnt from them that the tribe had fled four days before;
that it had a collection of canoes, in which the old men, the
women and children had embarked, and that the warriors had
g()ne by land: He urged the other tribes to follow in pur-
suit of them, but there was only a portion of them who would
consent, the others saying the enemy had got too far for them
to be able to catch up with them. The French had nothing
but Indian com to eat, and this, added to the advanced sea-
eon, and a march of 400 leagues on their return, by which the
safety of half the army was endangered, decided them upon
burning the four Fox Villages, their forts and their huts, to
destroy all that they could find in their fields — Indian com,
peas, beans and gourds, of which they had great abundanca
They did the same execution among the Puants. It is cer-
tain that half of these nations, who number 4,000 souls, will
die with hunger, and that they will come in and ask mercy.
Major De Cavagnal, who has been in the whole expedition,
and has perfectly performed his duty, is able to certify to all
this.

In returning, having passed by a fort of the Sakis, these
savages told him in a council of our tribes, that they no
longer wished to stay with them, for fear of the Foxes, and they
were going to retire to the Kiver St. Joseph. It was impos-
sible to re-assure them, which obliged him, seeing this post
abandoned, to bum the fort, lest the Foxes or their allies
should take possession of it, fortify themselves, and make war
upon our nearest allies, the Folles Avoines.

In a second letter of M. Beauharnois, of the 8th of Sep-
tember, 1728, he states that neither the glory nor the arms of
the King were at all interested in this expedition, the Foxes
having abandoned every thing, and, retired to the Ajoues.*

•lowas.

94 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

All the army attribute the failure to M. De Lignery's stay
at Mackinac, which was considerable. But the climax was,
that a Potowatamy, who had come to the army with four
others, three of whom did not appear, was sent back to his
comrades by M. De Lignery to say, that he had come to talk
with the tribes, and even with the Foxes, who were only two
days distant. This savage warned the latter of all he had
seen in the army, and instantly they prepared to take flight.
The French and savages wished to march upon them, but M.
De Lignery would not hasten his departure, under the idea
that the Potowatamy would return. The murmur was very
general against him in the army. The savages in their speeches
have not spared him, and have asserted that the people from
the Upper Country ought to come in the spring and state their
complaints to him.

M. De Lignery performed another manoeuver on his return
to the Bay, which no one could understand. Because the
Sakis said they were afraid of the Poxes, and that they wished
to establish themselves at the River St. Joseph, without well
examining the consequences of the step he was taking, he de-
cided upon destroying the fort, though he had people and ammu-
nition, and could wait for orders until the next year ; and surely
the Sakis would not have left, and not have dared to do so.

In this business M. De Lignery was the man in power in
all the Colony, and French and savages would have marched
under his orders with great pleasure. M. De Beauharnois is
sorry to be obliged to state things as they are, but there will
bo many letters which will say the same thing, and he thinks
it better that Monseigneur should know the truth of the
matter. He might add, that they say that M. De Lignery
was ill, and that he did not wish that any other should reap
any glory from the undertaking. M. De Beaujeu, who was
second in command, would have admirably acquitted himself.
Messrs. De Artagnal, Du Buisson and all the other oflScers,
would have desired nothing better than to have gone ahead.
Every one wished it, but M. De Lignery would not listen to
any representations.

1867] Canadian Documents 95

The following marginal notes are appended to the above
paper :

"M. De Lignery allows the Foxes to escape."
"It is to be regretted, that the enterprise did not have the
success which was expected from it, both from the expense of
itj and from the consequences it might have had. It is certain,
that M. De Beauhamois took all possible measures that it
should have no evil results. There is every reason to believe,
that the Foxes, who suffered much from the destruction of
their villages and plantations, will ask for peace, and that is
extremely to be desired."

LA BUTTE DES MORTS— HILLOCK OF THE DEAD.i

The gates of mercy shal) be ail gbut up ;

And the flesh'd soldier — rough and hard of heart —

In liberty of bloody band, shall range

With conscience wide as hell ; mowing like grass

Your fresh fair virgins, and your flowering infants. — Henry V.

La Butte Des Morts is, as its name implies, a little hill at
the confluence of the Fox and Wolf rivers, and in the angle
between them. From its summit, the voyager may have a
view of the Lake of Graise d'Ours to the east, and of a long
reach of the Fox Eiver, and many a rood of fat prairie land to
the westward. When he is tired of beholding the prospect, he
may descend to the water side, and amuse himself by shooting
at the blue-winged teal, the most delicious of the feathered
creation, as they fly past him in myriads. He will do well not
to fire if they fly high, for they are fattened on the wild rice
of the river, and usually burst open on falling. Or, if he is
given to moralizing, he may go to the field between the hill

iBy William J. Snelling. . . -^

96 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

and the woods, and speculate on thei bones that have been
whitening there for more than the age of man.

"There the slow blind worm leaves his slime
On the fleet limbs that mock'd at time.
The knot-grass fetters there the hand
That once could burst an' iron band."

The last time the author was on the spot, a pit had just
been dug on the top of the hillock, and in it were put, with
shrieks and howling, the remains of a noted Winnebago
brave, whose war cry had been heard at Tippecanoe and the
battle of the Thames. At the head of the grave was planted
a cedar post, on which the rude heraldry of the natives had
emblazoned the rank and achievements of the deceased.
Three black emblems represented three American scalps. Let
us be forgiven, reader, for dwelling on the place. Silent and
solitary as it now is, it is the scene of events that mayhap it
will please thee to hear related. Alas! that strife and
slaughter, and the extermination of a native tribe, should be
pleasant things for us to write, or for thee to read.

About the year seventeen hundred and twenty-five, the
principal village of the Saque nation stood on the Butte Des
Morts. Here the Saques were accustomed to stop traders
passing into the Indian country, and to exact from them a
tribute — as the Winnebagoes have since done.* The traders
submitted with reluctance, but there was no help. At last,

*We learn from Schoolcraft's History of the Indian Tribes, III, 279, that
the Winnebagoes evinced some insolence towards the Americans during the
years immediately succeeding the war of 1812-15 ; that Hoo-Choop or Four
Legs, a stern chief at the outiet uf Vv^innebago Lake, assumed to be the keeper
of the Fox River Valley, and levied tribute, in some cases, for the privilege
of ascent.

Col. T. L. M'Kenney thus alludes to this Winnebago custom of exacting
tribute: Four Legs, a fine looking chief, occupied, with his village, the
tongue of land which runs out between Winnebago Lake, on the one side, and
Fox River on the other. When Gen. Leavenworth, some years previous to
1827, was ascending the Fox River with troops, on his way to the Mississippi,
on arriving at this pass. Four Legs came out, dressed in all his gewgaws and
feathers, and painted after the most approved fashion, and announced to the
General that he could not go through ; ''the Lake," said he, ''is locked."
"Tell him," said he General, rising in his batteaux, with a rifle in his hand,
•that THIS IS THE KEY, and I shall unlock it and go on/ The chief had a
good deal of the better part of valor in his composition, and so he replied, 'Very
well, tell him he can go.' "

Ne-o-kau-tah, or Four Legs, has his village at the outlet of Winnebago Lake.
He served under the British during the war of 1812-'15, figuring at Fort
Meigs, Sandusky, and on McKay's expedition to Prairie du Chien. He was
an active and influential Winnebago Chief, and a very worthy man ; but like
most of the Red Race he dearly loved fire-water, and indulging too freely, he
fell a victim to it in a drunken debauch at the Wisconsin Portage, in 1830.
Mrs. Kinzie relates the particulars of his death and funeral observances, about
his Fox wife, and gives an. interesting account of his adroit management to
marry off a very Hecate of a daughter for ugliness to the late John H.

1867] Canadian Documents 97

emboldened by impunity, the savages increased their demands,
so that a total cessation of trade was likely to ensue, and bick-
erings arose between the plunderers and the plundered. In
the autumn of seventeen hundred and twenty-four, a hot-
lieaded young Canadian trader refused to pay the customary
tribute, and severely wounded a Saque who attempted to take
it forcibly. He was instantly shot dead and scalped, and his
boat was pillaged. Some accounts say, that his men were
killed too, but this part of the story, though probable, is not
certain. As no notice of the affair was taken that winter by
the authorities commissioned by the Grand Monarque, the
insolence of the Sauks increased greatly, and they imagined
in their ignorance that the French stood in fear of them. But
in this they reckoned without their host, or rather without
Jean St. Denis Moran.

The Sieur Moran, a man of a decided and energetic char-
acter, held an office in the French Indian Department. He
was, moreover, an old campaigner and had been at Fr'ied-
lingen and Malplaquet. When tidings of what had happened
were communicated to him at Quebec, his mustacios twisted
upward for very anger, and he swore, Sachristie! and Mort de
sa vie! that the Saques should repent their presumption. In
order to the fulfillment of this laudable vow, he demanded of
tie oofTiiiiaiiding officer at Quebec that three hundred regulars
should be placed at his disposal, and the request was granted.*
With these troops he proceeded to Michilmacinac, where he
remained till the first of October, to mature his plans.

Here he caused eight or ten Mackinaw boats to be construct-
ed. For fear that some of our readers may not know what a
Mackinaw boat is, we will try to inform him. It is a large,
strong built, flat bottomed boat, pointed at both ends, and pe-

•While we feel disposed to give 8ome credit- to this narrative, or that part
of it relating to the causes and movements of Marin a£;ainst the Foxes — relying
upon It, as a tradition, so far as it may be corroborated by other sources of
information, and so far as it may accord with probability, yet it is quite appar-
ent that the writer has drawn somewhat upon his imagination for supposed
facts with which to connect the several parts of the story. The date assigned
to the expedition, the Christian name of Marin, his military services in the
Low Countries, the tidings of the Indian exactions reaching him at Quebec, and
there securing 300 regulars witli whom to chastise the Insolent savages, must,
we thlnlc, be regarded of this character. L, C. D.

98 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

culiarly adapted to the Indian trade, in which it is often neces-
sary to ascend and descend dangerous rapids. It is always
furnished with a 'parlas, or sheet of painted canvass, large
enough to protect the ladii^ from the weather. But this equi-
page was never used for the purpose for which the Sieur Mo«
ran designed it, before nor since.

Furthermore, he provided many kegs of French brandy, and
all things being in readiness, proceeded from island to island
across the head of Lake Michigan to Green Bay. Here he
might have speculated on the phenomenon of a tide in the fresh
water, as Mr. Schoolcraft and other learned philosophers
have done; but different matters occupied his mind. He en-
camped, and sent a messenger to the Hillock of the Dead to
require the instant surrender of all persons concerned in the
late breach of the peace, as well as reparation for all robberies
and injuries committed by the offending tribe. The Saque
Chief laughed the message to scorn. Tell our father,' said
he, ^that the Saques are men. Tell him, too, that even if he
should in earnest be disposed to punish his children, they have
legs to take them out of the way, if he should prove too hard
for them.' Having made this lofty speech, he looked round
with much self-complacency, and when the concurrence of the
audience had been signified, he added, ^I am a wise man.'
Had he foreseen the consequences of his words, it is probable
his opinion of his own wisdom would have suffered some dim-
inution. He smoked a pipe with the disconcerted envoy, gave
him to eat, and desired him to make the best of his way back
to whence he came.

On receiving this answer, M. Moran convened a band of
Monomonees that had encamped in the vicinity, and whose
chief, unless tradition deceives us, was called Aus-kin-naw-
waw-Witsh. To him the old soldier communicated his inten-
tion of bringing the Saques to condign punishment, and re-
quested his assistance. Tather,' replied Aus-kin-naw-waw-
witsh, Svhat you say is good. You are a wise man. We
have wished to see you a great while, because we are very
poor, and we know that you are rich. We have few guns, and

1867] Canadian Documents 99

no amnnmition or tobacco, and our women have no clothing.
Above all, we want a little of your milh^ to make us weep for
our deceased relations.f So a kind father will give us all
these things. But wisdom requires that we should deliberate
on your proposal. Father, a little of your milh will brighten
our understandings.' And to all these sayings the inferior
Monomonees assented with a grunt, or groan of applause, for
it might be called either.

M. Moran was obliged to acknowledge the justice of these
axioms. He supplied the immediate wants of the savages, and
gave them a keg of brandy. The consequence was a frightful
riot of three days' duration, in which three of the intended al-
lies were slain. Aus-kin-naw-waw-witsh required a further
delay of three days "to cry for the slain;" and he even sug-
gested that a little more milk would make the tears flow faster
and more readily. To this hint, M. Moran returned a per-
emptory refusal. In the meanwhile, the crafty Monomonee
sent to the Saques a warning of their danger; but they per-
sisted in believing that they would not be attacked, and that
they should be able to defend themselves if they were.

After the mourning had terminated, Aus-kin-naw-waw-
witsh announced the result of his deliberations. ^If my
father,' said he, Vill give us the land the Saques now live
upon, and if he will make us a handsome present, and if he
will give us more of his milk, we will assist him.' To all
which postulates the Sieur Moran agreed, only stipulating
that the payment should take place after the work was done.

M. Moran told the Monomonees that he should want them

*Ardent spirits.

tThe Sioux or Daticotahs sometimes bury their dead, but more frequently
expose them on scaffolds, or in the branches of trees. In the latter case, It is
said that the bones are afterwards interred, we believe without truth, never
having witnessed it. The arms, &c., of a warrior, are buried or exposed with
him. Formerly a horse was sacrificed, that the deceased might reach hisi
future place of abode on horseback. In old times, prisoners^ were put to
death also,, that the deceased might not want slaves in the next world. The
Winnebagoes have observed this rite within the remembrance of many persons
now living. When the corpse of a female is disposed of, her implements of
labor accqmpany it. The men mourn for their dead relations by wounding
their arms blackening their faces, &c. The women cut their limbs with
flints and knives. We have known mortification to take place in consequence
of the severity of these self-imposed afflictions. In one instance, we have seen
death ensue. The demonstration of grief is never so energetic as when stimu-
lAted by the use of ardent spirits. The mourning is renewed at every re-
currence of intoxication, and they often beg for whisky "to make them cry."-

W. J. S.

loo Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

after two sleeps,* and dismissed them. Then he loaded one
of his boats with merchandize, not forgetting a goodly quan-
tity of brandy, and gave her in charge to a non-commissioned
officer and four Canadian boatmen. They received his in-
structions to ascend the river to the Butte Des Morts, and
there suffer the boat to be pillaged without resistaace or re-
monstrance.'. They were then to proceed a few miles farther,
encamp, and wait for further orders. His orders were obeyed
to the letter. The Saques plundered the boat, and, drinking
"die brandy, were soon in no condition for attack or defence.
]^ow was the time for Moran to act, and fearfully did he
avail himself of it. A mile below the Hillock of the Dead,
and on the same side of the river, is a stream, just wide enough
to allow a Mackinaw boat to enter a few rods. To this the
Sieur Moran succeeded in getting, at noon, the day after his
advanced boat had passed. Here, out of eight of the village,
he landed his Monomonees and half of his soldiers. He
ordered them to gain the woods in the rear of the Saques, and
there wait till the firing commenced in front. When sufficient
time had elapsed for his orders to be obeyed, the remaining
troops, crouched in the bottoms of the boats, with their arms
ready, and were covered with the canvass before mentioned.
This done, he put off, and the crews, disguised like boatmen,
rowed up the river, singing this ditty, which is still popular in
the :^orth-West:

Tous les printemps,
Tant de nouvelles,
Tous les amants
Changent de maitresses.
Le bon vin m'endort ;
L'amour me reveille.

Tous les amants
Changent de maitresses.
Qu'ils changent qui voudront,
Pour me garde la mienne.
Le bon vin m'endort ;
L'amour me reveille.t

♦The Indians compute time, and distance in traveling, by the number of
times they sleep.

tThe reader is indebted to Mrs. Mary A. Krum, of Madison, for the follow-
ing happy rendering of this ancient voyageur's song into English Tersification :
Bach returning spring-time
Brings so much that's new,

1867] Canadian Documents loi

They were soon within ken of the village. The Saqnes not
expecting the entertainment prepared for them, rejoiced at the
sight. TJjey ^\eve all drunk, or, at least, suffering the effects
of intoxication. ''Here come the traders to supply us with
fire-water and blankets," they said to each other ; "let us make
haste to the spoil." The women screamed with delight, the
children bawled in concert, and the host of the dogs added to
the uproar. Young and old hurried to the water side.

As the foremost boat came opposite to the crowd of dark
forms on shore, a dozen balls were fired athwart her course.
I^one struck her, but the prox:imity was sufficiently intimate to
show that lier farther progresfc would be attended with dan-
ger.* '"Scie, scie purtout/^ cried the frightened steersman, and
the rowers backed water simultaneously. M. Moran rose, and
commanded the interpreter to ask what they wanted? '^Skoo-
tay wawho! shootay tt;ait;6o/'' (fire-water), shouted five hundred
voices. "Shore," said Moran, and as the other boats were now
along side, they all touched the ground together.

"I let you all know, that if you touch any thing in the
boats, you will be sorry for it," cried the interpreter. But an
hundred hands were already dragging them farther aground,
and his voice was drowned by the clamor. "Help! help!
thieves! thieves!" cried Moran, in full deep tone. At once
the coverings were thrown off, and an hundred and £fty
soldiers were brought to view, as if by the spell of an
enchanter. "Fire!" cried Moran. The muskets flashed,
and twenty Saques fell dead where they stood. To the poor
misguided savages, the number of their enemies seemed
treble the reality. They fled precipitately to their village to
prepare for defence. Two minutes sufficed for the troops to
form and pursue.

All the fickle lovers

Changing sweet-heartsf too.
The good wine soothes and gives me rest,
While love inspires and fills my breast.

All the fickle lovers
Changing sv/eet-hearts still,
I'll keep mine forever,
Those may change who will.
The good wine soothes and gives me rest,
While love inspires and fills my breast.
♦Firing across a boat with ball, is the Indian way of bringing her to.

W .T S.

102 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

The Saques found at their lodges another and more terrible
enemy than the French. A Monomonee had entered the place
unsuspected, and set it on fire on the windward side.* The
wind was high, and in a few moments the frail bark dwellings
were wrapped in a sheet of flame. The Saques then retreated
towards the woods in the rear, one and all. 'Ere they were
reached, Moran's reserve met them, and they were placed
between two fires. Then burst forth one heart-rending, agon-
ized shriek; and the devoted Saques prepared to defend them-
selves with the courage of despair. Ball and bayonet now
began their bloody work. The victims were hemmed in on
every side. The Monomonees precluded the possibility of
escape on the flanks, and the knife and glittering tomahawk
cut off what the sword had spared. The inhabitants of the
village fought with unshrinking courage. Few asked quarter;
none received it. They perished, man, woman and child. The
horrors of the dreadful tragedy may not be repeated, yet, in
less than an hour it had been enacted, and the actors were
gone. A heap of smoking ruins, and a few houseless dogs,
howling after the dead bodies of their masters, were the
only objects the sad hillock presented. But five Saque
families, that had been absent at the time, survived the
slaughter — the poor remains of what had been a cons'iderable
tribe. They left their country, and emigrated to the Missis-
sippi, where they incorporated with the Foxes, and where their
descendants remain to this day.f

♦The summer or permanent villat?es of the Northwestern Aborigines are
built of bark, and may, therefore, be easily fired. W. J. S.

tParkman, in his Historij of the Conspiracy of Pontiac, a work of great
merit, states that he found on a tattered scrap, amoung the McDougal manu-
scripts— preserved by a son of L}eut. McDon.^al, who was captured by the
Indiana in. the Pontiac war, in 1763 — the following: "Five miles below the
mouth of Wolf river is the Great Death Ground. This took its name from the
circumstance, that some years before the old French War, a great battle was
fought between the French troops, assisted by the Monomonees and Ottaways,
on the one side, and the Sac and Fox Indians on the other. The Sacs and Foxes
were nearly all cut off, and this proved the cause of their eventful expulsion
from the country."

Schoolcra^^t, in his Discourse before the Michigan Historical Society, says
the Foxes "concentrated their remaining force at Green Bay, where they formed
a close alliance with the Sauks, and for a while sustained themselves. But they
were pursued by the French, with the aid of the Chippewas and Monomonees,
and were beaten in two sanguinary, battles on the St. Croix and Fox rivers, fled
to the Wisconsin, and finally sought refuge west of the Mississippi."

McKenney, in his Memoirs and Trarels. sn'^'akinjr of the Great and
Little Butte des Morts says: "All the mounds that I have seen, that are
conical in form, as are those of two hills of the dead, are full of the
bones of men. I sought of aged Indians [in 1827] their tradition la
relation to this Little, as weU as the Great Hill of the Dead, and learn-

1867] Canadian Documents 103

It is due to Sieur Moran to say, that he did all he might
to mitigate the fate of his victims. But his voice was exerted
in vain. Victorious troops are seldom merciful in the field,
and the Monomonees would not be restrained. There was no
room for rapine, for there was nothing to take; but lust, and
red-handed murder, stalked openly over the Butte Des Morts
on that day. From this carnage of the Saques, it derived its
name.

That evening, Aus-kin-naw-waw-witsh appeared before
the Sieur Moran, and demanded the promised recompense.
''Let what you have seen be a warning to you," said the
leader; "If your people, now masters of the soil, offend in
the same sort, be assured they shall drink of the same cup that
the Saques have drained.''

ed that a long time ago a battle was fought, first upon the spot which is Le
Petit Butte Des Morts and the grounds adjacent, and continued upon that and
the surrounding country, upon which is found Le Grand Butte Des Morts, be-
tween the Iroquois and Fox Indians, in whifh the Iroquois were victorious,
liilliug an immense number of the Foxes at Le Petit Butte des Morts ; when,
being beaten, the Foxes retreated, but rallied at Le Grand Butte Des Morts, and
fought until they were nearly all slain. Those who survived fled to the Mis-
sissippi."

For the sake of preserving the fact in this connection, we may cite from a
speech made by Pontiac, the great Ottav.-a chief, in 1763 : "Remember the war
with the Foxes, and the pnrt which I took in it. It is now seventeen years
since the Ojibwas of Michillimackinac, combined with the Sacs and Foxes, came
down to destroy you. Who then defended you? Was it not I and my yonng
men? Mickinac, a great chief of all these nations said in council, that he
would carry to his village the head of your comiiciandant [at Detroit] — that he
would eat his heart, and drink his blood. Did I not take your part? Did I
not go to his camp, and sfiy to him, that if he wished to kill the French, he
must first kill me and my warriors? Did I not assist you in routing them, and
driving them away?"

This reference of Pontiac's would point to the year 1746 as a period of a war
on the part of the Foxes nud Cbippewas against the French, apparently in the
Detroit region. If such a war occurred at that period, we have no particulars
of it. It is possible that Pontiac may have erred as to the date, and may have
personated himself, as Indians frequently do, as simply representing his nation.
But it is quite probable, however, that he referred to a real outbreak at the time
he mentioned. Hon. M. L. Martin, la his Address delivered before the Wis.
Hist. Societj in 1S51, alludes generally to "the engagements in which the
Foxes were defeated at Butte Des Morts, and on the Wisconsin river, and
finally driven beyond the Mississippi, leaving the entire country in 1746 in the
possession of the French and their allies, the Chippewas, Monomonees, Win-
nebagoes and Pottav/atomles." And Gen. Smith (Hist. Wis., i, 343) alludes
vaguely to "a war, under 'Mackinac the Turtle' asrainsf the Fronch, in 1746."
Yet these references, it must be confessed, are obscure and uncertain. L. C. D.

I04 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

ALLIED INDIAN EXPEDITION AGAINST THE FOXES

[Report of M. De Beauharnois, May 6th, 1730, of an expedition against
the Foxes, made by the Outaouaes, Sauteux, Folles-Avoines and
Puants.]

My Lord: I have the honor to communicate to you the
favorable news I have received this winter, through different
letters of officers who command in the Upper Country.

A party of over two hundred Indians, Outaouaes, Sauteux,
Folles-Avoines and Puants,* fell on the Foxes, surprised and
destroyed twenty flat boats of this nation who were returning
from a buffalo hunt, containing eighty men, who were all kill-
ed or burned, except three — the allied Indians having burned
the boats, three hundred women and children shared the same
fate.t

I have the honor, my Lord, to communicate this news, with
so much the more pleasure, as there is no doubt existing on
the subject, circumstances and letters received by me from all
parts, which do not contradict themselves concerning this affair
corroborate the fact. It is also confirmed by the journey taken
since this last adventure by the Great Chief of the Foxes to
the river St. Joseph, and by the message he brought to Sieur
De Villiers, commanding at that place, the tenor of which
is as follows:

"My father, I look upon myself now as dead; my heart is
quaking, and it is not without a cause. I have, however, to-
day, more influence over my young men than I had heretofore,
and they seem to be also more attentive to my words. I know

♦Ottawas, Sauters or Chippeways, Monomonees and Winnebagoes. L. C. D.

tThis could hardly have been one of Sieur Marin's expeditions against the
devoted Foxes, or his name would most likely have been mentioned in connec-
tion with it. This affair occurred, we should judge, in the autumn of 1729,
while the streams were yet navigable and the news of which De Beauharnois
received at Quebec during the following winter. The next official letter,
written seven weeks later, gives a reference to Marin's expedition as having
occurred in March, 1730 — thus rendering it certain that the defeat of the
Foxes returning in boats from a buffalo hunt, and Marin's enterprise against
them, were two different affairs. L. C. D.

i«67] Canadian Documents 105

the good heart of my father Onontio,* and I intend to go
down to Montreal next spring to see him, and crave for mercy
— death for death; for I prefer trusting to the goodness of my
father, exposing myself to the risks of being killed on the way,
rather than to be killed in my own village. I have thought
tiiat if I [my people] have been killed, it has only been done
after repeated warnings to us to preserve peace."

Although, my Lord, these sentiments may appear to proceed
from a nation truly repentant and submissive, I shall yet keep
good watch. It is very certain, that the continued war waged
against them by the nations with whom they were formerly
at peace, should teach them, that it only proceeds from their
rupture with the French, and that they will not be left quiet
until they have made their peace with us. I will add, that
the impression made by our army on the minds of our Indian
allies, leads me to think that they will always maintain them-
selves in our interest and continue to follow up the blow with
which they have struck the Foxes, as long as they know them
to be embroiled with the French.

I am to a certain extent convinced of the fact, through our
Indians, who in this last affair only acted according to the so-
licitation I made of them, to destroy the Foxes, and not to
suffer on this earth a demon capable of confounding or oppos-
ing our friendly alliance. They seem to have acted upon these
principles, by which I am inclined to think, that if I pursue
the same course, they will continue to act as they have done
heretofore.

These reasons, my Lord, cause me to judge, that if the sub-
mission of the Foxes is not sincere, they are at least constrained
to it by necessity; besides, I will see what they will say to me
when they come do^vn to Montreal; and, on that occasion, I
will be very careful not to grant them any thing, except on
very advantageous conditions, and meanwhile I will see that
all their actions be carefully watched. I postpone, my Lord,
until the coming autumn, to inform you of the results of this

*The title by which the French Governor of Canada was known to tlia
Indian nations. L. C. D.

io6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

affair, by which I feel confident of the success with which I
had flattered myself; and there is some appearance that our
allied nations, who have lost ten or twelve men in this last ex-
pedition, have made since some other attempt on the Foxes to
avenge themselves.

I have the honor to be, with great respect, my Lord, your
very humble and obedient servant.

Signed, Beauhaenois.

At Quebec, May 6th, 1730.

NEW EXPEDITION AGAINST THE FOXES.

[The Marquis De Eeauharnois' letter to the Minister, June 25th, 1730,
relative to a new expedition against the Foxes.]

My Lord: The Sieur Du Buisson, who commands at Mis-
si limakinac, has dispatched to me a canoe from there with ad-
vice that all the nations of the Upper Country were very much
fexcited against the Foxes; that a considerable body of Indians
had collected, and requested him to place himself at their
head, to fall upon this nation and destroy it entirely.

He states that he thought best not to refuse, inasmuch as
their proposition tended towards the peace of the Colony, and
that it was very necessary to take this step to over awe the In-
dians and cut short their remarks against the French, concern-
ing our little success in the last campaign against the Foxes.
This officer, my Lord, must have left his post the 20th of last
May, with six hundred men, among whom, are fifty French-
men.*

I have the honor to send you here annexed the extract of a
letter written to me by the Sieur Marin, who commanded at
the Folles Avoines, concerning the movement he made last
March against the Foxes, with the Indians of this post, through

♦We have, unfortunately, no further account of this expedition of Du Buls-
son's, of May, 1730. L. C. D.

1867] Canadian Documents 107

their solicitation, as you will see, my Lord, in the details of
this adventure or action which was of the warmest character
and very w^ell supported.

This officer informs me that he was present at the council
held at MissilimaMnac, when the Indians invited Monsieur Du
Buisson to place himself at their head, and that a few of the
Jolles-Avoines, who were there also, presented to him the
tomahawk, (as it is customary on similar occasions) to invite
him to be one of the expedition. Sieur Marin must have gone
with the Sieur Du Buisson, I expect news from their expe-
dition before the last of July, of which I will have the honor
to inform you immediately.

I have also the honor of being, with very great respect, my
Lord, your very humble and obedient servant,

Signed. Beauhaknois.

At Montreal, this 25th day of June, 1730.

SIEUR DeVILLIERS DEFEATS THE FOXES

[Messrs. De Beauharnois and Hocquart's letter to the Minister, Novem-
ber 2, 1730, relating to the defeat of the Foxes.]

My Lord: The Sieur Coulon DeVilliers, son of the
Sieur DeVilliers commanding at the River St. Josephs, has
just this moment arrived, dispatched by his father to br'ingus
the interesting news of the almost total defeat of the Foxes;
two hundred of their warriors have been killed on the spot, or
burned after having been taken as slaves, and six hundred
women and children were absolutely destroyed.

This affair took place in September, under the command of
the Sieur DeVilliers, to whom were united the Sieur De-
!Noyelle, commanding the Miamis, and the Sieur De St.
Ange, father and son, from the government of Louisiana, with
the French of that distant Colony, together with those of our
posts and all the neighboring Indians, our allies; we num-

io8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

bered from twelve to thirteen hundred men. The Marquis De
Beauhamois will have, My Lord, the honor to send you a
description of this action by the Sieur Le Fevre^s vessel^
which will sail in about eight or ten days.*

We risk this letter by a vessel going to Martinique, which
may pass at the Isle Koyal. It was on the point of starting
when we learned this news.

This is a brilliant action, which sheds great honor on Sieur
DeVilliers, who, through it, may flatter himself as having
some share in your fr'iendship, and the honor of your protec-
tection in the promotion which is to take place.

Signed :

Beauhaenois^ and

HOCQUAET.

Historical Notices

Of De Louvigny, Pekkot, De Lignery, De Beaujeu, Marin^
Du BuissoN, De Yilliees, De IToyelle, and St. Ange.

By Lyman C. Draper

Louis De La Porte, Sieur De Louvigny, was a native of
France, and bred to arms in both the land and marine service.
He entered the service in Canada as early as 1682 ; he was sent
1 ^oC\D to command at Mackinaw, in May, (J609) and made a heroic
attack on a party of the Iroquois Indians on the way, signally
defeating them. He remained -in that command four years,
rendering good service, and managing the Indians of the
North West with great success. In 1694, he was recalled
from that command, and, during the winter of 1695-96, he
headed a picked body of 300 French and Indians on an

♦This vessel was wrecked, and the despatches were returned to Messrs.
Beauharnois and Hocquart ; "among the rest, those regarding the last defeat
of the Foxes."— See letter October 1, 1731, Voi. IX, N. Y. Colonial History,
p. 1029. ^- C- ^-

1867] Canadian Documents 109

expedition from Canada against the Iroquois, but owing to the
great depth of the snow, which fell in some places seven feet
deep, and the severity of the weather, they proceeded only a
few leagues beyond Fort Trontenac, and returned in March
with a few captives. During the campaign of 1696, he was
among the most active of Count De Frontenac's partisan lead-
ers. In I^ovember, 1697, he was placed at the head of 500
men to proceed against the Mohawks, but a heavy fall of snow
prevented the execution of the plan. In the fall of 1699, he
was placed in command of Fort Frontenac, but was recalled
the following spring, for trading, as was alleged, in peltries,
contrary to orders, and imprisoned in consequence.

ISTotwithstanding this error — perhaps of the head rather
than the heart — the Sieur De LouVigny still retained the con-
fidence of his superiors, and we find him, in 1701, promoted
to the position of Major of the Three Rivers, and two years
later Major of Quebec. He proposed, in 1703, to carry on
an expedition against the Indians beyond Lake Superior; and
was, in 1705, sent on a mission to Mackinaw to recover some
Iroquois prisoners captured by the Indians of the Upper Lake
country. We find him, in 1709, attending a council of war
in Quebec; and the following year, greatly mortified that he
had been neglected in the King's promotions; and Gov. Vau-
dreuil, evidently to assuage his feelings, testified to his merits,
and suggested his appointment to the chief command of Macki-
naw^ with the Sieur De Lignery to serve under him. While
it is not so apparent that his appointment was made, it never-
theless shows the high regard entertained for him by the Gov-
ernor of the Province ; and early in I71i6, we find him in com-
mand of a large force, evidently marching from Mackinaw,
against the hostile Sauks and Foxes, and De Louvigny's ofl&-
cial account of the expedition is now, for the first time, given
to the public, among the preceding documents.

It is this formidable military expedition into the very heart
of Wisconsin, more than a century and a half ago, that wiU
ever indissolubly associate his name, services and memory
with the primitive history of our State.

no Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

AVliile absent on this important service, lie was chosen by
the Council to the Lieutenancy — or Lieutenant Governorship
of the Province, to serve in the absence of the Governor. On
the 28th E'ovember, 1724, Gov. De Vaudreuil wrote to the
IVench Ministry, that the Sieur De Louvigny would soon pro-
ceed to France, and commended him to the Government for
his intimate knowledge of the Indians, and his acquaintance
with the measures to terminate the Indian war. His services
to his country were so well appreciated, that while in his na-
tive land he was promoted to the Governorship of Three Elv-
ers; but lost his life by shipwreck near Louisburo;, returning
from France, on the night of August 27th, 1725. He left a
widow and two daughters; and, early in 1730, his widow
sought to return in one of the King's ships to France.

Nicholas Perrot, an early and adventurous explorer of Wis-
consin, born in 1644, was a man of talent, enterprise and con-
siderable education. He early repaired to the Indian country,
and made himself familiar with the Algonquin languages.
We now find him engaged as a trader ; first among the Potta-
wattamies, and then among the Foxes and Monomonees, ac-
quiring great infiuence among them, especially the Foxes, who
called him Metamenens, or Little Maize. The Foxes, it is said,
on one occasion, at least, showed the sincerity of their friend-
ship, rescuing him from the Miamies and Maskoutens, at their
village at the head of Fox river, and honoring him with a guard.
Having been invited to a banquet, by the chief of the latter
tribe, he profited by the occasion to address the warriors of the
two tribes, and formed a kind of alliance between them, to the
great displeasure of the Pottawattamies. In the spring of
1670 he joined a flotilla of canoes, setting out from Green Bay
for Montreal, manned by no less than 900 men, and reached
that city safely. In the following year he accompanied Sieur
De St. Lusson, as his interpreter, to a gTand council at Sault
St. Mary, when De St. Lusson took formal possession of the
country in the name of the King of France.

In the spring of 1683 he was sent by Gov. De La Bar re,
with a band of twenty men, to establish friendly alliances with

38671

Canadian Documents 1 1 1

the lowoys and Sioux or Dacotahs; he established a post on
the Mississippi, below the mouth of the Wisconsin, and to this
^'enterprising trader," says Dr. O'Callaghan, ''is the world
indebted for the discovery of the celebrated Lead Mines, on the
river Des Moines, in Iowa, which at one time bore his name."
In 1684 he raised an Ottawa force to join Gov. De La Barre
in what proved a fruitless expedition; and the next spring he
was sent back, with extensive powers, among the Western In-
dians. On his way he brought about peace between the Foxes
on the one side, and the Ottawas, Chippewas and Sioux on the
other, by restoring to a Chippewa chief his daughter, held cap-
tive by the Foxes. After taking command at Green Bay, he
went up the Fox river to the town of the Miamies and Mas-
koutens, descended the Wisconsin to its mouth, and visited the
Sioux country. De ^onyille, the successor of De La Barre,
not approving of such distant expeditions, ordered Perrot to
return to Green Bay. "I could not," says Perrot, "obey
without abandoning the goods which I had induced merchants
to advance to me for my voyage. I was then in the Sioux
country, where the frost had broken all our canoes. I was
obliged to spend the summer there, during which I endeavored
to get canoes to return to Michillimakinac, but they did not
arrive till the fall" of 1686. While at Green Bay, on this oc-
casion, he presented a splendid silver ostensorium to the mis-
sion of St. Francis, at "La Baye des Puantes, 1686," with his
name and presentation engraved thereon, which was dug up a
few years since while excavating for the foundation of a house
on the site of that ancient church.*

While at Green Bay, Perrot received orders to collect all
the French and Indians of his region, and march to the east-
ward to join De l!Tonville in his campaign against ,the Sene-
cas. While visiting the ' Indian tribes to enlist them in the
French service, a formidable party of 1,500 Foxes, Maskou-
tens and Kickapoos, going out against the Sioux, formed a plot
to rob Perrot's post and massacre all the French in the set-

*At Depere, five miles above Green Bay. See Wis. Hist. Collections, III,
note, p. 108. L- C. D.

112 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

tlement. But fortunately returning in time, he made exag-
gerated reports of his own strength, secured the chiefs, and
thwarted their nefarious plans. The next spring, 1687, he re-
paired to Mackinaw, and thence went eastward and joined De
!N'onville, and shared in his memorable campaign against the
Senecas. But during his absence, the mission buildings near
Green Bay, in which he had deposited his furs for safety,
were totally destroyed by fire.

In 1689, we find him commissioned ^% manage the inter-
ests of commerce of the Indian tribes and people of the Bay
Des Puants, Nadouesioux, Mascoutins, and other Western na-
tions of the Upper Mississippi, and to take possession in the
King's name of all the places where he has heretofore been,
and whither he will go.'' He was soon recalled by Gov. Fron-
tenac to Mackinaw, and visiting Montreal, he accompanied
Sieur De Louvigny to his new command at Mackinaw, and
was afterwards stationed among the Miamies at Maramec, or
the Kalamazoo, in Michigan. In 1695, he visited Montreal at
the head of a delegation of Sauks, Foxes, Monomonees, Mi-
amies and Pottowattamies ; and, in 1697, a party of Miamies
retiring from an unsuccessful foray against the Sioux, met Per-
rot, and, smarting under their failure, after plundering him of
his property, were about to burn him, and he was only saved
by the friendly intervention^ of the Foxes, by whom he was
greatly beloved. At the peace concluded in 1701, he was the
interpreter of one of the Western tribes on Lake Superior,
and was subsequently employed by the administration of the
Marquis De Vaudreuil, to whom he addressed a memoir re-
specting French interests in the Western country. He trav-
eled over the most of 'New France, and left behind him evi-
dence of his intimate knowledge of Indian character in his in-
teresting work, entitled Moeurs, Coutumes, et Religwn des Saii-
vagcs, dans V Amerique Septentrionale', largely cited by De La
Potherie, Charlevoix, Lafitau and others, which remained in
manuscript until published in Paris, in 1864, in a 12 mo. vol-
ume. Charlevoix testifies, that Perrot "was a man oif
much ability;" and Shea, the scholarly historian of ISTew

1867] Canadian Documents 113

Prance, adds, that after all his labors, Perrot returned a
ruined man to Montreal, and died subsequent to 1718. His
memory and services as an adventurous pioneer explorer of
Wisconsin deserve to be held in lasting remembrance.

Sieur Marchand De Lignery, or De Ligneris, who led
an expedition against the Sauks and Poxes in 1728, proved
himself, during his long and important services, a man of un-
common vigor and ability. The first notice we find of him is
in lYlO, when it was proposed by Gov. Vaudreuil to send
him to Mackinaw as second to De Louvigny; and he was
then regarded by the Governor as possessing ^'not less merit,"
though less experience, than his superior in command. It is
probable, he remained in service at Mackinaw for many years,
and very likely served on the expedition against the I oxes in
1716. In 1726, he concluded a treaty, at Green Bay, with the
Sauks, Poxes and Winnebagoes. The accounts already given
of his Pox expedition, in 1728, embody all we at present know
of that early enterprise.

In 1739 we find him among the troops assembled at the gen-
eral rendezvous at Port L' Assumption, at the mouth of the
River Margot, near the present City of Memphis, on the Mis-
sissippi, for a new campaign against the Chickasaws, under
Bienville; but from the tardiness of the arrival of a portion
of the troops, disease and great mortality among those en-
camped or in garrison, together with a deficiency of provisions,
the expedition was abandoned.

At the period of 1741, the Poxes were sending out war par-
ties against the Prench settlements in the Illinois country, and
killed several of the Prench settlers. De Lignery favored a
vigorous movement against the Poxes, whose utter destruction
was demanded, as Prench presents and good treatment failed
to induce them to keep their promises and live in peace; and
they had, moreover, a secret understanding with both the Sioux
and Iroquois to give them a friendly reception, in case they
should be obliged to abandon their villages. Though such an
expedition was approved by De Longueuil and De Beauhar-

114 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

nois, and plans made for carrying it out the fallowing year, it
was probably discouraged by tbe King and cabinet, and laid
aside; and presents were again substituted for the sword with
which to conciliate those refractory Indians.

We subsequently hear of De Lignery as serving in Acadia
— probably during the period of 1745-47. During this war
a party of Dutch and Mohawks, the latter under the famous
Thoianoguen, or White Head, better known as King Hen-
drick, penetrated in 1747, to the Cascade of the Island of
Montreal, where they were defeated by the Chevalier De La
Corne and M. St. Pierre, with whom De Lignery served,
on this occasion, with much credit. The next year he was
sent to New York to negotiate an exchange of prisoners. Gov.
La Galissoniere pronouncing him ^^a very prudent officer^'
for such a misson. In 1752 he was commanding the French
post at Wea, on the Wabash, about eight miles below the pres-
ent city of Lafayette, where he had a troublesome command
with a wily and restless set of Indians around him.

In the battle of Monongahela, July 9, 1755, he distinguished
himself; it being related that the '^Sieur De Lignery, and the
other officers, followed by the French and Indians, fell so im-
petuously on the English, as to force them to retire.'' Towards
the close of 1756, we find him the successor of Dumas in com-
mand of Fort Du Quesne, and was very active during the en-
suing two years in keeping out parties attacking and harass-
ing the frontiers of the British Colonies, and assailing Gen.
Forbes' advanced parties, and defeating Major Grant. He
enjoyed the confidence of Gen. Montcalm. When Gen.
Forbes's advanced parties, and defeating Major Grant. He
French were too weak to resist successfully so well appointed
an army, and retired — De Lignery, at the head of a body
of 200 men, retiring to Venane^o, the mouth of French Creek,
where he erected Fort Machault. He was, the next season,
1759, ordered to fall back to Fort Niagara, which was menaced
by Gen. Prideaux and Sir Wm. Johnson; and assembled 850
French and 350 Indians, at Presque Isle, whom he led to

1867] Canadian Documents 115

the relief of ISTiagara, but his whole party was defeated, and
he himself wounded and taJien prisoner. We find no further
mention of him.

Of the Sieur Daneil Lienard De Beaujeu, the second in
command on De Lignery's campaign against the Foxes ;in
1728, we can find but little, though it is evident that his serv-
ices must have been long and important. In 1748, we find
him assisting at an Indian council at Quebec; and, in 1755, he^
after many entreaties with his superior officer, Contrecoeur,
and the Indians, led forth his band of French and Indians
against the almost overwhelming advancing army of Brad-
dock. The Indians were very reluctant. "I," exclaimed
Beaujeu, ^^am determined to go out against the enemy. I
am certain of victory. What! will you suffer your father to
depart alone?'' Fired by his language and the reproach it
conveyed, they yielded to his entreaties, replenished their am-
munition, and sallied forth under the leadership of De Beau-
jeu, Dumas, De Lignery and De Langlade. Beaujeu, went
before them, with long leaps, the gaily-colored fringes of his
hunting-shirt, and the silver gorget on his bosom, bespeaking
the chief, who led them on to battle and to victory. H©
gained immortal fame at the expense of his life, for he fell
early in the engagement before the shower of grape and mus-
ketry. In the valleys of the Fox and Wisconsin, twenty-seven
years before, he had doubtless learned some of the lessons of
forest-war which now culminated in a triumph so glorious to
the arms of France, and so disastrous to those of Great Britain
and her American Colonies.

De Beaujeu was Captain of the troops of the marine, a
Knight of the Military Order of St. Louis, and a proprietor
of a S'eignory on the Kiver Cambly, in Canada.

Sieur La Perriere Marin* would seem to have been the

♦This ofllcer must not be confounded with the Sieur Marin, who served in
Acadia, and" on the borders of New York during the period of 1745 — '48 ; nor
must Bay Yerte, where he sometimes served, which is connected with the strait
of Northumberland, and north of the Bay of Fundy, be confounded with our
Green Bay of Wisconsin,

There was a captain La Marque De Marin who was associated with Gov. JoN-

QDiBRE, and other Canadian dignitaries, in a company formed professedly for the

exploration of the West, at Government expense, but in reality having only

trading profits in view. De Marin was to ascend the Missouri to its aource, and

ii6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

person wlio commanded tlie post at the FoUes Avoine or Mo-
nomonees in 1730, and in March of that year led an expedi-
tion against the Foxes. It is to he regretted that we yet have
no certain details of that expedition — or rather perhaps, series
of expeditions, as related by Grignon; the bare allusion to it,
and fixing the date, in the preceding Canadian Documents,
only serves to whet our appetites for more. In the absence of
further official accounts, we must be thankful for the traditions
of it handed down to us by the late venerable Augustin Grig-
non, as narrated in the 3d volume of our Collections, there
given as Captain Morand; and those of Mr. Snelling, trans-
ferred from his rare work to our present volume. The Gov-
ernment archives in Canada, and in Paris, may yet furnish
important documents upon this, and other military enterprises
of that period.

In 1747, Sieur La Perriere Marin commanded the post
at the River St. Joseph, on the eastern border of Lake Michi-
gan. He wrote in July of that year, that the English were en-
deavoring to debauch the Indian nations contiguous to that
post, by the unfavorable impressions they were trying to insin-
uate among them through the Iroquois, or Five J^ations, of
E'ew York, who managed to embroil the Indians of the ISTorth-
West in difficulties with the French, and employ every pre-
text to effect the destruction of that post; but mentions the
Pottawattamies as an exception to that influence, always ap-
pearing devoted to the French. It would appear, that inj
1754, he was in command at Green Bay — ^we have the good
authority of Dr. O'Callaghan in favoring this opinion. Gov.
Duquesne, in his despatch of October, 1754, says: ^The In-

thence to follow the course of the first river presenting itself that seemed to
flow towards the Pacific. But the accumulation, peltry being the grand object,
they never got farther than the Rocky Mountains, where they erected Fort
Jonquiere in 1752. The chief partners of the speculation carried on at State
cost, divided a large spoil, the Governor's share having been three hundred
thousand francs. Thus, says Gaeneau, ended ignobly, by a project nobly con-
ceived, but made almost abortive by injustice and selfishness.

It is possible that this Captain La Maequb Dk Marin is the true name of onr
early Wisconsin hero — yet, on the whole, we think not. This Captain Makin
must have been a person of the Quebec region, well known to the Governor and
other dignitaries — perhaps the one who served in Acadia and on the New York
borders, in 1745-48 — to have figured so prominently with them in this plunder-
ing Rocky Mountain scheme.

In Vol. IX, p. 139, of the N. Y. Colonial Documents under date July, 1747.
we find Sieur La Perriere Marin's name in full, as then commandant of the
post of St. Joseph ; on page 263 of the same volume, the same person
unquestionably is mentioned as commanding at The Bay — Green Bay — in
1754. L. C. D.

1867] Canadian Documents 117

dians ox tlie IN'orth are very quiet, because Sieur Marin, who
commands at The Bay, and leads the Indians at will, has pro-
cured a rej)ose for tliem by the peace he has caused to be con-
cluded with the Christinaux."*

In July, 1Y56, Sieur Coulon de Villiers, at the head of
400 Frenchmen and some Indians, ^^and Mr. Marin, com-
mandant at The Bay, with sixty Indians of his post," attacked
and routed several hundred batteaux, returning from con-
veying supplies to Fort Oswego, killing a large number of
the English, and making forty prisoners. And shortly after
the capture of Oswego, in the same year, and in which he
must have taken part, Liei^t. Marin utterly defeated, at the
head of a hundred Indians, a party of iifty-two English near
Lake George, whom he had drawn out of their fort. And
in 1757, he took part in the capture of Fort William Henry,
commanding at the time a party of twenty Foxes, and it is to
be presumed, thirty-three Sauks, forty-eight Winnebagoes of
Green Bay, ten lowas and one hundred and twenty-nine Mo-
nomonees, who were then connected with the army, and aU
from that region of country. He shortly after accomplished
a most daring expedition against Fort Edward, in which the
great Montcalm declared, that ""he exhibited a rare audac-
ity,'' for with a detachment reduced to about two hundred
men, "he carried off a patrol of ten men, and swept away an
ordinary guard of hfty, like a wafer;'' took post in the
woods near the Fort, when some 4,000 English troops then
sallied out, as the French represented, and fought for an hour,
when Marin, having killed a number of his foes, retreated in
safety, bringing in thirty-two scalps and one prisoner. And,
the following year, 1758, he was actively engaged at Ticondor-
oga; and after the repulse of Abercrombie's English and
Colonial army, Marin had a severe fight with the partisan
Major Eobert Rogers, and from his inferior force he was
compelled to retire, which he did in good order, and brought
in several prisoners.

*The Christinaux, or Knistinaux, a powerful tribe residing north the Sioux,
and the most northerly nation of the Algonkin-Lenape family.

ii8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

This is tlie last notice we find of Sieur Marin, unless, as
we suspect, that he is the person referred to as Captain Marin,
who is brought to view in his promoted grade, as the Lieuten-
ant disappears. In June, 1759, he lead a party of 280 In-
dians, apparently Delawares and Shawanoes with Rocheblave
and three Canadians, from Fort Niagara ^'to insult" Fort Pitt,
which they found in poor condition, and could have taken had
the French portion of the detachment been stronger. He re-
turned with the large reinforcements under De Lignery for
the relief of Fort ^Niagara, shared in its defeat, and was among
the prisoners taken on that occasion — '^the famous Frendal
partisan Marin,'' as described in the Life of Sir William John-
son. The surrender of all Canada soon followed, when most
likely Marin, like his fellow soldier De Langlade, retired to
the far-off wilds of Wisconsin, where he probably died some-
time anterior to 1781.*

In 1711, Sieur Du Buisson was sent to assume the com-
mand of Detroit, and defended the place most gallantly the
following year. In 1719, he was designed for the command
of the post of Wea, on the Wabash; and in 1730 we find
him, commanding at Mackinaw, and projecting an expedition
Against the Foxes, which, it would seem, he carried into ef-
fect. During the period of 1747 and 1748, he was command-
ing first at Detroit, and then at the Miamies; and in April,
1760, a Captain Du Buisson received a gun-shot wound in the
shoulder in the battle before Quebec. This is all we can find
respecting the services of that officer; nor are we certain that
these references all relate to the same person, though they do
apparently.

Of the Sieur De Villiers, who led the important expedi-
tion against the Foxes, in September, 1730, and who com-
manded the Fort at St. Joseph, we have unfortunately no fur-
ther particulars; but his sons, Capt. Coulon De Villiers and
Chavalier l^eyon De Villiers, are well known in our border
history.

♦See Wisconsin Historical Collections, vol. iii, p. 211. and 505.

1867

Canadian Documents 119

Coulon De Villiers, doubtless, served with liis father on
his campaign against the Foxes, and deserves special notice.
We next find him, early in 1747, carrying on a winter expe-
dition, on snow shoes, to Acadia, on the present borders of
IsGW Brunswick and ^N^ova Scotia, and had some severe fight-
ing, in which, at first, the French were successful, but Vil-
liers was badly wounded in the left arm, and he and his party
were eventually obliged to capitulate. In 1754, he com-
manded a force at the head of the Ohio, reduced Fort Neces-
sity, making Washington a prisoner. ^'Villiers' victory," ob-
serves Garneau, "was the first act in the great drama of twenty-
nine years' duration, in which both Great Britain and Franxje
were destined to suffer terrible checks in America." He sub-
sequently formed a camp of observation at Niagara. During
175i6, he was placed at the head of a corps of a thousand Ca-
nadians and Indians to watch the British movements in the
Oswego region, and destroyed a convoy of two hundred ves-
sels, in which over five hundred English were killed or taken;
and he shared largely in the siege and capture of Oswego.
When, in 1757, the English made a sortie during the siege of
Ioi*t William Henry, De Yilliers attacked and drove them
back, killing over fifty, and making four prisoners ; and shared
in the glory of capturing that important garrison. It would
seem that he was still employed in the service till 1759, and
was one of the defenders and captives of Niagara in that year;
after which we hear no more of him. From his fiery and im-
petuous, yet brave and prudent, character, executing the most
perilous enterprises, and evincing proofs of the most daring in-
trepidity, he was called Le Grand Villiers.

Neyon De Villiers was the youngest of seven brothers, six
of whom, it is said, lost their lives in the wars of Canada —
one of whom, M. De eTumonville, was killed by Washington's
party in 1754. In 1751-52 he commanded Fort Miami, and
was subsequently stationed at Fort Chartres, in the Illinois
country, from which he convoyed provision, by water to Fort
Du Qnesne; and, in 1756, led a force of Illinois French and
Indians all the way to Fort Granville, on the frontiers of Penn-

I20 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

sylvania, which he captured and burnt, and retired with a
large number of prisoners. He held the conmiand of Fort
Ohartres till June, 1764, when he retired to ISTew Orleans.
He received the order of the Cross of St. Louis as a reward
for his fidelity and iservices.

The first notice we have of Sieur De ISToyelle, is as com-
mandant of the Post at Miami and serving under Sieur De
Villiers, on his expedition against the Foxes, in September,
1730.

In 1732, a war party of the Iroquois and Hurons, encour-
aged, if not led, by Sieur Charles Deschamps De Boishebert,
the commandant at Detroit, went on an expedition against
the Foxes, and for their " ad venture' ^ the details of which are
not given, the principal chiefs were promised medals of honor.
The Foxes and their allies became so troublesome, that prep-
-a rations began, near the close of 1734, for a new expedition
against them, which was carried on the following year. Sixty
soldiers were assigned to the Sieur De iSToyelle for this serv-
ice, aided, apparently, by such numbers of friendly Indians
as he should think proper to embody for the enterprise. We
are without the details of its execution, but it probably re-
sulted very much like De Lignery's, when the Foxes managed
to evade coming to blows, and kept out of harm's way. In the
ofilciai docmnents of the times, we find one written in October,
1736, in which the follov/ing occurs: ^'Sieur De Beauhar-
nois reported last year the cause of the ill-success attending
Sieur De ISToyelle's campaign against the Foxes and Sakis.
He has the honor to inform you of the resolutions adopted by
these Indians, and of the disposition of the Sakis, according to
the news he has received from the commandant at the river St.
Joseph.'' In a letter of Louis XV, of May, 1737, he says:
^'His Majesty has learned with pleasure, that .Captain De
[N^oyelle's expedition against the Foxes and Sacs in 1735, has
not been attended by any bad consequences."

In 1741, the French accounts represent that the English were
instigating the Indians of the Upper Country to rid themselves
of the French, but this is hardly probable. The Foxes did,

1867] Canadian Documents 121

however, send out some war parties against the Illinois,, by
whom several Frenchmen were killed in that region, as already
mentioned in our notice of De Lignery; and an expedition
was contemplated for the following year against them. If it
took place, which is not probable, none more likely than Sieur
De J^oyelle to have shared in its honors and hardships. But
as we find the French authorities distributing presents to the
Sacs and Foxes in 1742-43, we presume a peaceful policy was
deemed preferable

Capt. De iSToyelle arrived at Quebec from Mackinaw, in
the summer of 1747, with dispatches and intelligence from that
quarter, and in tlie latter part of that year we find him in com-
mand at Mackinaw. He w^as present at an exchange of pris-
oners at Montreal, in 1750, and was then recognized as a Cap-
tain of infantry, and a Knight of the Royal Military Order of
St Louis. His son was a lieutenant in the service, and second
in command at Mackinaw, at the period of 1745-47 ; and one
or the other, as mentioned in Pouchot's Memoir ^ was com-
mandant of the small garrison at Toronto in 1757. We find
nothing further concerning either of them.

Sieur De St. Ange commanded the escort which accom-
panied Charlevoix, the celebrated historian and traveler,
through the Western country in 1721. O'Callaghan states
that he distinguished himself against the Foxes in 1728; but
we suspect the expedition of Sieur De Yilliers, in Septem-
ber, 1730, is the service referred to, when the Sieurs De St.
Ange, father and son, joined De Villiers with a party of
French from the distant Colony of Louisiana — that part of it,
doubtless, known as the Illinois country; and it must have
been in that region that St. Ange figured as an officer in
1730, as stated by Gayarre and O'Callaghan. When D'Ar-
taguette led a force from the Illinois, in 1736, against the
Chickasaws, one of the St. Anges — probably the son — ac-
companied him, and was killed in battle with that intrepid
nation. The survivor, Louis St. Ange De Belrive, was com-
m.andant at Yincennes at the period of 1751-52, and subse-
quently served in the Illinois country, succeeding l^eyon De

122 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

Villiers in command at Fort Chartres, when he retired from
the country in June, 1764. He surrendered that post to the
English, in October, 1765, and retired to St. Louis. The tra-
dition that he subsequently returned, and resumed the com-
mand at Fort Chartres for a brief period, is unworthy of credit.
Sir Wm. Johnson intimates, in 1766, that St. Ange had en-
listed in the Spanish service; and as late as 1772, he speaks of
him as yet on the Mississippi, as a former active French officer,
and at that time, in Johnson's opinion, acting as a secret agent,
sending out mischievous belts in the name of the French King
to the Indians, to prepare them to co-operate with the French
in case of a renewal of hostilities. But these are mere sur-
mises of Johnson, and do not deserve serious consideration.

It is thus seen, that in the primitive days of Wisconsin, a
goodly number of gallant French officers, whose names have
become immortalized in the history of the country, either led
or accompanied large bodies of whites and Indians along the
beautiful Fox Kiver Valley, and participated in many a savage
conflict with the intrepid Sauks and Foxes. In recording that
sanguinary chapter in the early annals of those tribes, we can-
not but admire their desperate bravery in contending for their
homes and loved ones, and commiserate their sufferings and
misfortunes.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 123

Early Days at Prairie du Chien

And Winnebago Outbreak of 1827/

Perhaps some of our readers may have seen Carver o*
Schoolcraft's Travels. If they have, it may be that they
know, albeit neither of the books is worth a brass pin as au-
thority, that the Chippewa and Dakota or Sioux tribes have
waged war against each other so long that the origin of their
hostility is beyond the ken of man. General Pike persuaded
them to make peace in 1805, but it lasted only till his back
was turned. The agents for the Government have brought
about several treaties between the tribes, in which forgiveness
and friendship for the future, were solemnly promised. In-
dian hereditary hate is stronger than Indian faith, and these
bargains were always violated as soon as opportunity occurred.
Nevertheless, our Executive gave orders in 1825, that a gen-
eral congress of all the belligerent tribes on the frontier should
be held at Pra,irie du Chien. They flocked to the treaty
ground from all quarters, to see the sovereignty or majesty —
we know not which is the better word — of the United States^
ably represented by Governors Cass and Clark, who acted as
commissioners.

The policy of the United States on this occasion was
founded on an error. It supposed that the quarrels of the In-
dians were occasioned by a dispute concerning boundaries of

^This article originally appeared quite * number of years ago in thie public
prints, and was re-published, in 1857, by the Minnesota Historical Society,
with the suggestion that perhaps Wm. J. Snblling was the writer. The In-
ternal evidence, in style and in references, malte it certain that Mr. Snblling
wrote these interesting reminiscences ; let the curious reader, If he will, but
carefully investigate these points, if only long enough to compare the identity
of the single reference in this sketch, and in the preceding paper on La Butte
Des Morts, regarding the begging characteristic of the Indians for some of their
father's 'milk,' to help them "to cry for the slain," and we think he will be
sufficiently convinced, that the same paternity is safely attributable to both
sketches. Mr. Snblling was an eye-witness tc much that he relates, and
though his style is somewhat humorous, it is graphic, and may in the main be
regarded as trustworthy. L. C. D,

124 Wisconsin Historical Collections

ivol. V.

their respective territories. I^ever was a treaty followed by
more "unhappy results, at least as far as it concerned the Da-
kotas. They concurred in the arrangement of their bounda-
ries proposed by the commissioners, as they do in every meas-
ure proposed by an American officer, thinking that compul-
sion would otherwise be used. But they are not satisfied, nor
had they reason to be, for their ancient limits were grievously
abridged. All the Indians present had, or imagined they had,
another cause of complaint. They had been supplied, with
food, while the congTess lasted, by the United States, as was
the reasonable practice, for they cannot hunt and make trea-
ties at one and the same time. Dysentery supervened on the
change of diet; some died on the ground, and a great many
perished on the way from Prairie du Chien to their hunting
grounds. Always suspicious of the whites, they supposed that
their food had been poisoned; the arguments of their traders
could not convince them of the contrary, and hundreds will
die in that belief.

Moreover, they did not receive such presents as the British
agents had been wont to bestow on them, and they complained
that such stinginess was beneath the dignity of a great peo-
ple, and that it also showed a manifest disregard of their ne-
cessities.

They were especially indignant at being stinted in whis-
key. It behooved the commissioners, indeed, to avoid the
appearance of effecting any measures by bribery, but the bar-
barians did not view the matter in that light. To show them
that the liquor was not withheld on account of its value, two
barrels were brought upon the ground. Each dusky counte-
nance w^as instantly illuminated with joy at the agreeable
prospect, but they were to learn that there is sometimes a
"slip between the cup and the lip.'' Each lower jaw dropped
at least six inches when one of the commissioners staved in
the heads of the casks with an axe, and suffered all the coveted
liquor to run to w^aste. "It was a great pity," said old Walvh-
pa-kco-tay, speaking of the occurrence, "there was enough
wasted to have kept me drunk all the days of my life."

S7] Early Prairie du Chien 125

1867

AVakli-pa-koo-tay's only feelings were those of grief and as-
tcnisliment, but most of liis fellows tlionght that this making
a promise to the eye in order to break it to the sense, was
a grievous insult, and so they continue to regard it to this
day.

The next year, a small party of Chippewas came to St.
Peters, about which there are four Dakota villages, on pre-
tence of business with ''their father," the agent, but in reality
to beg ammuniiioij, clotliing, and,, above all, strong drinks
The Dakotas soon gathered about the place with frowns on
their faces and guns in their hands. J^Tevertheless, three of
the Chippewas ventured to visit the Columbian Eur Com-
pany's trading-house, tw^o miles from the Fort. While there,
they became aware of their danger, and desired two of the
white men attached to the establishment to accompany them
back, thinking their presence might be some protection. They
were in error. As they passed a little copse, three Dakotas
sprang from behind a log with the speed of light, fired their
pieces into the face of the foremost, and then fied. The guns
must have been double loaded, for the man's head was liter-
ally blown from his shoulders, and his white companions were
spattered with his brains and his blood. The survivors gained
the Eort without further molestation. Their comrade was
buried on the spot where he fell. A stafi was set up on his
grave, which became a land-mark, and received the name of
i'Jie murder pole. The murderers boasted of their achievement,
and with impunity. They and their tribe thought that they
had struck a fair blow on their ancient enemies in a becoming
manner. It was only said, that Too-pun-kah Zeze, of the vil-
lage of Batiure aux Fievers, and two others, had each acquired
a right to wear skunk-skins on their heels, ami war-eagles'
feathers on their heads. ^

A winter passed, and the murdered man was not revenged.
In the spring we had another striking proof of Indian regard

^Tbe skunk is no coward, but is always ready to defend himself at a
moment's wa,rning. So when a warrior has proved his pluck, he has a right
to wear the distinguished badge of the skunk-skin. For every scalp taken
from an enemy, the right to wear a war eagle's feather is assured. L. C. D.

126 Wisconsin Historical Collections

[vol.

to treaty stipulations, and Indian love for American citizens;
and also of the wisdom of the Government that had expected
to bind them with strips of paper or parchment. Every one
knoAvs that, in the Western country, French people make
maple sugar in the spring. M. Methode chose to set up hi»
sugar camp at the mouth of Yellow Kiver, two miles from
Prairie du Chien.^ His wife, one of the most beautiful women
we ever saw^, accompanied him with her five children. Besides
these, the wolves and the trees were his only companions. A
week elapsed, and he had not been seen at the Prairie. One
of his friends, thinking that he might have been taken ill,
and was unable to come for his supplies, resolved to visit his
camp.

On reaching the mouth of Yellow Eiver, the man shouted
aloud, that Methode or his dog might answer, and thereby
indicate in what exact spot in the woods his cabin stood. No
answer was returned. After searching upwards of an hour,
and calling till he was hoarse, he fell upon a little path which
soon brought him to the ruins of a hut that appeared to
have been recently burned. All was still as it might
have been at the birth of Time. Concluding that Methode
had burned his camp, and gone higher up the river, the honest
Canadian turned homeward. He had not gone ten steps when
he saw something that made him quicken his pace. It was
the body of Methode's dog. The animal had been shot with
half a score of balls, and yet held in his dead jaws a mouthful
of scarlet cloth, which, apparently, he had torn from the calf
of an Indian's leg. The man ran at full speed to the bank of
the river, threw himself into his canoe, and paddled with all
his might till he was out of gun-shot from the shore.

Having made known what he had seen public, a party was
soon assembled, all good men and true, and well armed. They
soon gained the spot, and began to explore the ruins of the

^The killing of Methode and family occurred at a greater distance from
Prairie du Chien tlian Mr. Snelling, who evidently wrote from memory, sup-
posed. Judge LocKWOOD, Wis. Hist. Colls, ii, 155-56, says it happened in
March, 1827 ; that Methode, his wife, and, he thought, five children, were the
victims ; an^ that this tragedy occurred up Yellow or Painted Rock Creek,
•bout twelve miles above Prairie du Chien, on the Iowa side of the Mississippi,
where they had gone to make sugar. See, also, Neill's Minnesota, p. 304.

T. n -n

1867

] Early Prairie du Chien 127

hut. The bodies of the whole family wore there, and it was
evident that accidental fire had not occasioned their death.
They were shockingly mangled — Madame IMethode in par-
ticular. Her husband's hand grasped a bloody knife, from
which it was inferred that he had not fallen unavenged. Yet
the stains might have come from his own person.

When the coroner's inquest sat, it appeared that a party of
Winnebagoes had been out, notwithstanding the treaty, against
the Chippewas, and had returned unsuccessful. Fifteen of
them had been seen near the Yellow River two days after
Methode's departure from the Prairie. It was ascertained
that two Winnebagoes had been buried that night. The white
party returned to the village; and, the next day, an Indian
boy of fourteen admitted that he had seen Methode's camp
while hunting, and had communicated his discovery to his
companions. To make assurance doubly sure, Wa-man-doos-
ga-ra-ha, an Indian of very bad reputation, made his appear-
ance in the village in a pair of red leggins, one of which had
been torn behind. He came to tell the agent, Mr. Boilvin,
how much he loved the Americans, and that he strongly sus-
pected the Sacs of the murder that had been committed. He
demanded a blanket and a bottle of whisky as a reward for
his zealous friendship. Mr. Boilvin caused the friendly
Winnebago to be arrested, and examined him closely. Then
the murderer called up his Indian spirit, confessed his guilt,
and implicated several others.

A party of militia forthwith started for the nearest Winne-
bago camp. We are able to state — and we love to be correct
in important particulars, that the Captain wore neither plume
nor sash, nor anything else that might have made him con-
spicuous; that the men did not march in the style most ap-
proved on Boston common; that they beat no drum before
them, and that none of them had ever seen a sham fight. !N"o,
each marched "on his own hook," each carried a good rifle, or
!N'orth-West gun, and each kept his person as much out of sight
as possible. The consequence was, that the Indian camp was
surprised and completely surrounded, and the savages saw that

128 Wisconsin i-Iistorical Collections

[vol. V.

their best and, indeed, only course, was to surrender quietly.
However, the whites found only one of those they sought in
camp, and took him away with them. The celebrated chief
De Kau-ray followed them.

"Father,'' said he to Mr. Boilvin, "you know that there
are foolish young men among every people. Those who have
done this thing were foolish young men, over whom I and the
other wise men have no control. Besides, when they went to
Yellow Eiver, they had just drank the last of a keg which you
gave them yourself. It was the whiskey, and not they, that
killed Methode, and abused his wife. Father, I think you
should excuse their folly this time, and they will never do the
like again. Father, their families are very poor, and if you
will give them clothing^^and something to eat, you may be sure
that they will never kill another white man."

"I shall give them nothing," said the agent "and will be
sure that they will never kill another man; they will assur-
edly be hanged."

"Your heart is very hard, father," replied De Kau-ray.
"Your heart is very hard, but I cannot think that it will be as
you say. You know that if you take our young men's lives
we cannot prevent others from avenging them. Our warriors
have always taken two lives for one. Our Great Father, the
President, is not so hard hearted as you are. Our young men
have killed a great many of your people, and he has always
forgiven them."

At that time Prairie du Chien had no great reason to boast
of her administration of justice. A soldier, indeed, had been
scourged at the public whipping-post, a man of ninety had
been fined for lewdness, an Indian had been kicked out of a
wheat field, on which he was trampling, and the magistracy
prided themselves not a little on these energetic acts of duty.
A jail there was, but itw^as of wood, and stood so far from the
village, that a prisoner might carve the logs at noonday with-
out much danger of detection. Scandal says, that the jailor of
it Used to bolt the door with a boiled carrot. Into this strong-
hold the criminals were put at night — the place did not own a

1867] , Early Prairie du Chien 129

set of fetters — and in the morning tliej were missing. Had
they been left to their own devices, there is little doubt that
they would have remained to brave their fate, but it is thought
that some white man informed them what their exact legal re-
sponsibilities were, and advised them to escape.

Col. Willoughby Morgan commanded the military at
Prairie du Chien. He immediately caused two "Winnebago
chiefs to be seized, and informed the tribe that they would
not be liberated till the murderers w^ere delivered up. They
were soon brought in, and as the civil authority had proved
unable to keep them, they were committed to the garrison
guard-house. S^hortly after the garrison was broken up
by order of the Secretary of War, and the troops were re-
moved to St. Peters, two hundred miles farther up. There
was no appearance of the District Judge to try the prisoners,
and they were therefore transported to St. Peters, there to
await his coming.

They had long to wait; so long indeed, that they grew
excessively obese and phlegmatic. In the following autumn,*
another party of Chippewas came to St. Peters, and as they
remembered what had happened the year before, they took
care to arrive just at day-break, and proceeded directly to the
Port. There were twenty four persons in the band, eight of
whom were warriors; the rest were women and children.
The Chief was Kee-wee-zais-hish,^ or Plat Mouth, the
great man of the Sandy Lake Chippewas. He led his little
troop straight to the Fort, where he unfurled and planted an
American flag, and then demanded an interview with the
agent and commanding officer.

*Mr. Snelling here seems to have erred in the order of events — an error
very common to reminiscence writers, who do not realize the importance of a
strict regard to clironology ; or, more probably, neglect to verify the actual
historical order of the events they narrate. This event, according to Neill,
the usually careful historian of Minnesota, occurred in the autumn of 1826.
It preceded the Methcdb tragedy several months.

We may state in this connection, that the garrison mentioned at St. Peters
was Fort Snelling; and "the Colonel" in command there, was Col. Josiah
Snelling, the father of the writer, who seems from feelings of modesty to have
refrained from alluding to his father by name ; or perhaps, he was prompted
to do so, the better to conceal his own anonymous character as the writer of
these reminiscences. L. C. D.

2 Such too is tTae orthography of the Indian name of Big Mouth as it appears
appended to the treaty of Prairie Du Chien, iil August, 1825. In Nbill's
Minnesota we find it Aisn-KE-BUG-GB-KOZH ; and Es-qui-vu-si-coge, or Widb
Mouth, is Schoolcraft's orthography. L. C. D.

130 Wisconsin Historical Collections ivoi. v.

The Dakotas soon learned what was passing, and by the
time the gates were opened, a considerable niunber of them
had assembled to gaze upon the enemy. Presently the officers
came forth, and desired the visitors to enter. ^'Be not angry,
latjier,'^ replied the Flat Mouth, ''but I would rather say
something here, before I enter your wigwam or eat your
bread; I desire that all these nah-too-es-sies — enemies —
should hear it.^'

The Colonel sent for the Chippewa interpreter, and, when
he had come, desired the Chief to say on.

"Father," said the chief, "you know that more than a year
since, we made peace with your nah-too-es-sie children, because
you desired us. We have kept the peace and listened to your
advice, as we always do, for our American fathers are wise
men, and advise us for our good. These men know whether
we have done so or not. I speak with a sick heart. We are
but few here, and these men will not keep the peace with us.
We ask you to protect us, as we would protect you, if you
should come into our country."

The Colonel replied, that he could have no concern with the
quarrels of the Dakotas and Chippewas. If they fought any-
where else, he could not help it; but while they remained un-
der his flag they should not be molested, provided they did not
molest others. He bade them pitch their lodges on a spot
within musket shot of the walls, and there, he said and
thought, they would be safe. He would make their cause his
ovsm if any harm should come to them there. This speech
being expounded to the Dakotas, they all exclaimed — "hachee!
hacheel hax^hetool" — that is itl that is right!

The Flat M'outh then entered the Fort and partook of
American hospitality. He then explained the object of his
visit. It was tlie old story, repeated the thousandth time:
That they were very poor; that they had left their friends at
home with heavy hearts, and hoped that their father would
give them something to make them glad. In short, the end-
less catalogue of Indian wants was summed up by a humble
petition for a little of their father's milk — whiskey — "to make

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 131

them cry^' for certain friends they had lost. This shameless
beggary should not be taken as proof of want of spirit The
main point in their political code is equality of property; he
that has two shirts thinks it a duty to give one to him who has
none. He who has none, thinks it no shame to ask one of
him who has two. The effect of this system is, that they are
always in want of everything, and the application of their
own principles of action to their white neighbors makes their
company excessively troublesome. It is true, that they are
willing to reciprocate, as far as lies in their power, but then
they never have anything to give.

On the occasion in question, our Chippewa friends got, if
not all they asked, yet more than they expected. Then, after
having entered the garrison with the buffalo dance, they
left the Fort, and set up their lodges as they had been
directed.

In the afternoon Too-pun-kah Zeze arrived from the Bat-
iure aux Fievres, with seven of his own band, and one other.
They went directly to the Chippewa cajnp, and entered the
largest lodge, where it happened that there were just nine per-
sons. The young Dakota above named held in his hand a
pipe, the stem of which was gaily ornamented with porcupine's
quills and hair stained red. The Chippewa spread skins for
his party, shook hands with them, and invited them courteous-
ly to be seated. They also directed the women instantly to
prepare a feast of venison, com and maple sugar, all of which
articles were mixed together, and placed before the Dakotaa
in brimming bowls. When the entertainment waa over, Too-
pun-kah Zeze filled the peace-pipe he had brought, and passed
it round. None rejected it, and all might, therefore, con-
sider themselves pledged to peace, if not to love. 'The con-
versation then became general and amicable. The Chip-
pewa women coquetted with the Dakota youths, who seemed
in no wise to consider them as enemies.

'Eo Dakota is suffered to wear a war-eagle's feather in his
hair till he has killed his man. Too-pun-kah Zeze wore one
for the Chippewa he had so treacherously slain the year be-
10

132 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

fore, as we have already related. One of the fair Chippewas
noticed it. "You are young to wear that," said she.

"I shall wear another before I am much older," he replied.

Certainly after so much friendly intercourse, and so many
demonstrations of good will, no one could have suspected any
sinister purpose. The Chippewas, too, might have relied on
their proximity to the Fort. But "the heart of man is des-
perately wicked." The Dakotas had shook hands, and smok-
ed the pipe of peace with their former foes, had eat of their
fat, and drank of their strong. At last, at sun-set, they took
their guns and rose to depart. The eight foremost halted out-
side the door, while the last held it aside with his foot, and all
discharged their guns into the lodge, excepting one whose
piece missed fire. The assassins gave the Indian cri de joie,
and fled like deer.

The guns were heard in the Fort, and the news soon reached
the commanding officer, who immediately ordered the offi-
cer^ to proceed to the nearest village with an hundred men,
and apprehend as many Dakotas as he possibly could. IN'o
time was to be lost, for the night was fast coming up the hori-
zon! The Chippewas who were not hurt, joined the party.
Circumstances proved favorable to the enterprise; just as the
party left the gate, upwards of a hundred armed Dakotas ap-
peared on a low ridge near the Fort The Captain divided his
force, and dispatched one party round the small wood to take
the enemy in the rear, while he advanced upon them in front.
The Dakotas kept their ground firmly. Some covered them-
selves with the scattered scrub oak trees; others laid down in
the long grass. Guns were already cocked when the detached
party appeared in their rear. Then the Indians gave way.
Most escaped, but thirty were taken, and speedily conveyed to
the Fort, where accommodations were provided for them in
the guard-house and the black-hole. The Chippewas, too, re-

»Mr. Nbill, in his Hist. Minnesota, p. 392, says Captain Clark was the of-
ficer sent ovit on this service "early the next morning." This was Capt.
Nathan Clark, of Connecticut, who entered the service as Second Lieutenant,
in May, 1813, and after the war, was retained in the Fifth Infantry, rose to
the rank of a Captain In 1824, and a brevet Major in 1834, and died at Fort
Winnebago, Wisconsin. February 18th, 1836. L. C. D.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 133

moved their lodges into the Fort, and the wounded were car-
ried into the hospital.

Eight balls had been fired into the Chippewa lodge, and
every one took effect The wounds were the most ghastly we
ever saw made by bullets. The party had been lying or
reclining, on their mats; for there is no standing in a Chip-
pewa lodge. Consequently the balls passed through their
limbs diagonally tearing and cutting more than it is usual for
pieces of lead to do, though as ragged as chewing could make
them. One woman was killed outright, one man was mortally,
and another severely wounded, the latter being shot through
both ankle joints and crippled forever. All the rest were wo^
men and children,^ and more or less severely wounded. .

There was weeping and wailing in the Chippewa lodges that
night. The noisy lamentations of the women broke the rest of
the whole garrison ; but no one desired them to be silent, for the
rudest soldier there respected the sincerity of their sorrow.
!N^ever were Indian knives driven deeper into squaws' flesh in
token of grief, than on that occasion. The practice of morti-
fying the body, on the death of friends, seems to be, and to
have been, common to all rude people. The Jews clothed
themselves in sack-cloti, and threw ashes on their heads;
Achilles refused to wash his face till the funeral rites had
been performed over the body of Patroclus. Now, the male
Chippewas blackened their faces, indeed, but they did not gash
their arms. A soldier, who spoke their language, asked them
why they did not conform to the ancient usage of their nation-
"Perhaps we shall have use for our guns to-morrow," replied
the Little Soldier; "we must lose no blood, though our hearts
bleed, for we must be able to see straight over our gun
barrels. ' '

The Little Soldier was right in his surmise and precau-
tion. At an early dawn, the commanding officer visited the
v7ounded Chippewas, and asked them if they could recognize
any of their aggressors, in case they should appear before them.

1 "Among others," says Neill, "was a little girl about seven years old, who
was pierced through both thighs with a bullet." L. C. D.

134 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

Thej replied eagerly in the affirmative. He then asked them
why they had not been more on their guard. "We respected
your flag," replied the mortally wounded man, "and thought
that our enemies would do the same." The Colonel then asked
whether they had given the Dakotas any provocation?
"ISTone," said the Chippewa, "but we endured much." He
presented the peace-pipe which the Dakotas had brought with
them, and said that the hair with which it was ornamented
had belonged to a Chippewa head. We know not how he made
the discovery, but it is well known to all who have lived on
the frontier, that an Indian, on seeing a scalp, can tell, with
unerring certainty, to what tribe it belongs.

The wounded men were then, with their own joyful consent,
placed on litters, and borne to the guard-house. The Dakota
prisoners were paraded before them, and they identified two of
the number as having belonged to the band of assassins. "I
deliver them into your hands," said the Colonel to the Chippe-
wa warriors; "they have deserved death, and you may inflict
it, or not, as you think proper. If you do not, they must be tried
by the laws which govern us Americans. I have no power to
put them to death. You may let them go, if you please; I
wash my hands of the matter." This speech was interpreted
faithfully to the Chippewas, but none of them answered. In-
stead of speaking, they examined the flints and priming of
their guns. The Little Soldier drew from beneath his robe
a few fathoms of cord, cut from an Elk skin, and presently se-
cured the two criminals, fastening them together by the elbows.
It was observed that he drew his knots rather tighter than was
absolutely necessary; but no one blamed him. The Dakotas
were then led forth. As soon as they passed the gate, the
Chippewas halted and cocked their guns, for their vengeance
was growing impatient.

"You must not shoot them under our walls," said one of
the officers.

"I hope you do not expect us to take them very far," re-
plied a Chippewa.

The procession then moved on. One of the Dakotas struck

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 135

up the death song. The other attempted it, but did not suc-
ceed; his voice sunk into a quaver of consternation. The
Chippewas led them to a rising ground, about two furlongs
from the Fort, there halted, and bade them run for their lives.
They were not slow to obey the mandate, and their execu-
tioners gave them thirty yards law. At that distance, six
guns were discharged at them, and they fell dead. Instantly
the prairie rang with the Chippewa cri de joie, and the exe-
cutioners rushed towards the corpses, with their knives bared,
yelling like fiends. Twice and thrice did each plunge his
weapon into the bodies of the prostrate foes, and then wipe
their blades on their face or blanket. One or two displayed a
ferocity which those only who saw, can entirely realize. They
drew their reeking knives through their lips, and exclaimed,
with a smack, that they had never tasted any thing so good.
An enemy's blood was better than even fire-water. The whole
party then spat upon the body of him who had feared his fate,
and spurned it with their feet. They had not tasted his blood :
It would, they said, have made their hearts weak. To him
who had sung his death song, they offered no indignity. On
the contrary, they covered him w^th a new blanket. They
then returned to the Fort.

The Colonel met them at the gate. He had prevented all
over whom his authority extended from witnessing the scene
just described, and had done his best to make the execution the
exclusive business of the Chippewas. He now told them that
the bodies of the slain must not be suffered to remain upon his
land, where the spectacle might grieve the Dakotas who were
innocent of their crime. The party retired, and proceeded to
the slaughter-ground. They took the dead Dakotas by their
heels, trailed them over the earth to the bluff, and there threw
them over a perpendicular precipice a hundred and fifty feet
high. The bodies splashed and sank, and nothing more was
ever seen or heard of them.

Among the Dakotas detained in the guard-house was an old
man named Kho-ya-pa, or The Eagle's Head. We knew him
well — ^he once cheated us out ' of a considerable amount of

536 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

merchandise ; but it was in the way of trade, all fair, according
to the Indian ethics, and we bear him no malice. He had not
slept during the night, but had tramped up and down the
floor deeply agitated, ' to the extreme disturbance of the
soldiers. One of those who were put to death, was his nephew.
When this young man was designatel by the wounded Chip-
pewas as one of the assassins, and led forth to suffer death, his
tears flowed; and when he heard the report of the guns which
ended him, his emotions became uncontrollable. He immedi-
ately sent for the commanding ofiicer.

^Tather," said he, "the band of the Batture aux Fievres are
bad people. They are always getting themselves into trouble,
and others are always sure to suffer with them. It was foolish
to shoot the Chippewa last year, but they did it, and perhaps
one of my grand-children will be scalped for it. What they
have just done was a folly. They persuaded my nephew to
join them, and he is dead. Let them take the consequences of
their own act themselves this time. I know where I can find
two more of them, and if you will let me out, I will bring
them to you, and you may put them to death, as they deserve,
or spare themj — as you please. If you slay them, I shall be
glad ; if you let them go, I shall be sorry. They ought not to
be suffered to bring the whole nation into disgrace and
trouble."

"If the Colonel lets him out, I wonder when we shall see
him again," said one of the guard to another.

The Colonel knew the Dakota character better. "How
long," said he to Kho-ya-pa, "will it be before you return with
the man-slayers ?"

"By sun-set to-morrow night," replied the Eagle-Head, "I
will be before your gate, and if I come alone, you may give
my body to the Chippewas."

The sun was high in the heavens when the Eagle-Head
departed, with his gun in his hand, and his knife and toma-
hawk in his belt. It is sixty miles from St. Peters to the Bat-
ture aux Fievres, and he arrived there early the next morning,
having slept an. hour or two in the woods near the village.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 137

He went straight to the lodge of Sa-gan-do-shee, or The Eng-
lishman, for so was the father of Too-pun-kah Zeze named.
The family were already awake, and the murderer' was relat-
ing his exploit with great glee when Kho-ya-pa entered.

"Yon have acted like a dog/' said the old man to Too-pnn-
kah Zeze. "So have you," he added, turning to the other as-
sassin. "Some one must die for what you have done, and it
will be better that your lives be taken, than that others should
die for your folly. There are no worse men than yourselves
in our nation. I tell you, you must die. Rise and go with
me, like men, or I will kill you like dogs where you sit."

So saying, the old man cocked his gun, and drew his toma-
hawk from his belt. The women began to scream and scold.
The Englishman's brow grew dark, but no opposition was
offered. Perhaps the men were afraid to harm the Eagle*
Head, for though he was not recognized as a chief, his sons
and sons-in-law were many, and his influence was considerable.
Any one who should have harmed him would have certainly
suffered for it. Besides, his reputation as an upright and
valiant man was high; he was tall and erect, and age had not
withered his muscles and sinews. Whatever motives might
have restrained the families of the criminals from opposing
the aged warrior, Too-pun-kah Zeze showed no disposition to
disobey him. He rose with the utmost alacrity, handed the
Eagle-Head a rope, and tended his arms to be tied. When
he was secured, he requested his father to thrust sharp oaken
splinters through the muscular parts of his arms, that the
Americans might see that he cared not for pain. The Eng-
lishman, his father, complied, without uttering a syllable!

The other criminal was pale, trembled, and seemed wholly
stupefied by terror. However, he submitted passively to be
tied. "]^ow," said the Eagle-Head, "start — ^walk before me,
and that briskly, for you must die at the American Fort before
sun-set, and it is a long distance."

Just before sun-set that day, the Colonel and another ojfficer
were standing at the gate of the Fort. "It is late," said the
latter, "and our old friend does not show himself yet. I do

138 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

not think he will. He would certainly be a fool to come back
to what he thinks certain danger; for he had nothing to do
with the murder.''

"If I had kept him/' replied the commanding officer, "no
good could have come of it. He was innocent and could not
have been convicted, supposing that any of our courts may be
competent to try him. I believed that he would keep his word
and bring the real criminals, and I have no doubt about the
propriety of the course I shall adopt with them. I trust the
Eagle-Head yet; and, by heaven! he deserves to be trusted
— look! there he comes, driving the two black sheep before
him." Indeed, the old man and his prisoners came in sight at
that moment. They soon arrived at the gate. "Here they
are, father," said the Eagle-Head; "take them, and kill
them, and if that is not enough for the safety of my people,
take my life too — I throw away my body freely." The white
chief told Kho-ya-pa that he was at liberty from that mo-
ment, and made him a liberal present, after which the old man
withdrew. A hasty council was then held with the Chippewas,
to whom the victims were tendered, as the two first had
been.

By this time a considerable number of the Dakotas had as-
sembled about the prisoners. "You must die now," said one
man, "the white chief has given you to the enemy." "I
know it," replied Too-pun-kah Zeze, "and I am ready. I
shall fall like a man. Bear witness of it. Here, Falling
Leaf, take my blanket — I shall have no use for it. Take my
ear-rings, Gray Woman." He sat down upon the ground and
with the aid of others, divested himself of his ornaments and
apparel, which he distributed to those who stood nighest. His
dauntless mien, and handsome person, made the whites who
looked on, sorry for him. He was in the bloom of youth, not
above twenty, at most, six feet high, and formed after I^ature's
best model. Stain the Belvidere Apollo with walnut juice,
and it will be an exact likeness of Too-pun-kah Zeze. He
refused to part with the two eagles' feathers. One of them he
had not yet worn two days, he said, and he would not part

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 139

with them. The Chippewas would see that a warrior was
about to die.

The companion of Too-pun-kah Zeze followed his exaxaple
in giving away his clothing, quite mechanically, it seemed. It
was evident, though he did not speak, that he was not equal to
the circumstances in which he was placed. He was a villain-
ous looking fellow ; such a man, indeed, as a despotic sovereign
would hang for his countenance. He had the most hideous
hare-lip that we ever saw, and was thence called by the Dako-
tas The Split Upper Lip. He was known to most of the
white men present as a notorious thief, a character very un-
common among Indian men, though not among Indian women.

The Chippewa Chief, Flat Mouth, thus addressed the com-
manding officer:

^Tather, we have lost one life, and it is certain that one
more will die of his wounds. We have already taken life for
life, and it is all that our customs require. Father, do not
think that I do not love our people whose blood has been shed.
I would fain kill every one of the nah-too-es-sie tribe to re-
venge them, but a wise man should be prudent in his revenge.
Father, we Sandy Lake Chippewas are a small, a very small
band, and we are ill-armed. If we provoke the nah-too-es-sies
too far, they will come to our country in a body, and we are
not able to resist them. Father, I am a very little, weak chief
— (the varlet spoke falsely, for he was the biggest and most
corpulent Indian we ever saw). Father, we have already had
life for life, and I am satisfied."

Up started the Little Soldier, with fire in his eye. He
was properly named, being a very little man, almost a dwarf.
Yet he was thick set, active and muscular, and his spirit was
great. Little as he was, he enjoyed the repute of being the
bravest and most successful warrior of Sandy Lake. He it
waSj whose brother had been slain the year before at the mur-
der pole,

"Our father, with the Flat Mouth, says that he is satisfied,"
said the Little Soldier. "So am not I. We have had life

140 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

for life, as he says, but I am not satisfied. This man, (point-
ing to Too-pnn-kah Zeze,) shot my brother last year, and the
sun has not yet set twice since he shot my wife also. This
other aided him. They deserve to die, and they shall die.
Hoh!'' he added to the prisoners, signifying that they must
march.

Too-pun-kah Zeze sprung to his feet, and began to sing
his death song. It was something like the following, many
times repeated:

"I must die, I must die,
But willingly I fall.
They can take from me but one life :
But I have taken two from them.
. Two for one, two for ona, two for one, &c."

The Split Lip was wholly unable to imitate his brave com-
panion. He burst into tears, and piteously implored the com-
manding ofiicer to spare his life. He did not deserve to die,
he said, for he was not guilty. He had killed no one — his
gun had missed fire.

Here Too-pun-kah Zeze ceased singing, and indignantly
interrupted him: ^'You lie, dog! Coward, old woman, you
know that you lie ! You know that you are as guilty as I am !
Hold your peace, and die like a man! — die like me!" Then
turning his face away with an expression of exceeding con-
tempt, he recommenced —

"Two for one, two for one"—

and strode dragging the Split Lip after him.

Arriving at the place of execution, the Chippewas gave
them law — thirty paces start — and fired. The Split Lip was
shot dead on the spot. Too-pun-kah Zeze was also stricken
through the body, but did not fall. One bullet had cut the
rope which bound him to his companion, and he instantly
started forward with as good speed as if he had been wholly
unhurt. A shout of joy arose from a neighboring copse where
a few Dakotas had hid themselves to witness the spectacle.
Their joy was of short duration. The Little Soldier's gun
had missed fire, but he picked up his flint and leveled again.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 141

Too-pun-kah Zeze had gotten a hundred and fifty yards from
his foes, when the second bullet struck and killed him in-
stantly.

After this catastrophe, all the Dakotas quitted the vicinity
of Fort Snelling, and did not return to it for some months.
It was said that they formed a conspiracy to demand a council,
and kill the Indian Agent and the commanding officer.^ If
tliis was a fact, they had no opportunity, or wanted the spirit,
to execute their purpose.

The Flat Mouth's band lingered in the Fort till their
wounded comrade died. He was sensible of his condition,
and bore his pains with great fortitude. When he felt his end
approach, he desired that his horse might be gaily caparisoned,
and brought to the hospital window, so that he might touch
the animal. He then took from his medicine bag a large cake
of maple sugar, and held it forth. It may seem strange, but it
is true, that the beast ate it from his hand. His features were
radiant with delight as he fell back on the pillow exhausted;
his horse had eaten the sugar, he said, and he was sure of a
favorable reception, and comfortable quarters in the other
world. Half an hour after he breathed his last. We tried to
discover the details of his superstition, but could not succeed.
It is a subject on which Indians unwillingly discourse.

For a short time after the execution of Too-pun-kah Zeze
and his accomplices, the Indian country remained quiet. The
Dakotas avoided all intercourse with the whites. They were
angry at the death of their fellows, indeed, and spoke of ven-
geance among themselves; but they either were convinced of
the justice of what had been done, or knew the superior force
of the whites too well to think of taking any active measures.^

^Lawrence Taliaferbo, a native of Virginia, and an oflacer during the war
of 1812-15, liad been Indian Agent at St. Peter's, or at Fort Suelling, since
1820; and Colonel Josiah Snelling, was the threatened commanding of-
ficer. L. C. D.

2 Gen. Smith, in his Uistorp of Wisconsin, committed a sad mistake in stat-
ing that the four Indians surrendered to the chippewas for summary punish-
ment were Winnebagoes, which led to the resentment of Red Bird «pnd his
people. Gen. Smith has recorded his opinion, that Col. Snelling surrendered
the Indians to the Chippewas "certainly with great imprudence." Yet we
must say, that it was, under the circumstances, eminently justifiable ; that
some such firmness was called for, in order to maintain the dignity and
authority of the Government.

Col. Josiah Snelling was a native of Massachusetts, born in 1782 ; entered the
army as a First Lieutenant in 1808 : aoDointed first Paymaster, and then a

1^2 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

However, they resolved to make cat's paws of the Winneba-
goes, who were, and are, of much more decided character than
themselves. The tribe, as their traditions say, were driven
from Mexico by the companions of Cortez, or their successors.
The tradition is probably correct in point of fact; for they
state that they resisted all attempts tO' expel them from their
native land, till the white invaders hunted them with dogs of
uncommon size and ferocity; probably these were the blood-
hounds since employed to subdue the Maroons in Jamaica.
The Dakotas have a similar tradition. Be that as it may, the
Winnebagoes retained an inveterate antipathy to the Mexican
Spaniards, till very lately. They have now transferred it to
the people of the United Statea. Some old men amoi^ them
still remember the excursions they were wont to make in their
youth, to the borders of Mexico, whence they brought horses,
captives, &c. These people have more courage, and more na-
tional character, than any tribe of the iJ^orth West. Drunken-
ness is not so coromon among them as among other tribes, and
they are not so fond of mixing blood with the whites.

A good many of them joined the confederacy of Tecumseh,
and sixty of their best and bravest warriors were killed at
Tippecanoe. Several years since, when the Fifth United States
Eegiment of Infantry ascended the Mississippi, they halted
at Prairie du Chien, where they were visited by a great many
Winnebagoes. An aged w^arrior accosted Captain Gooding,^
as he landed on the beach, and offered him his hand. "I
think," said the Winnebago, ^^that I could tell what ails your
neck, that you have such a great scar upon it.'' "Probably
you could," replied the Captain; "you may have reason to
know that tbere is a Winnebago bullet in my flesh." "Aye,"
retorted the savage, "and I could tell you who put it in. But

Captain, in 1809 distinguished himself at the battle of Tippecanoe in November,
1811 ; was brevetted Major for meritorious services in the battle of Browns-
town, in August, 1812 ; distinguished in the affair at Lyon's Creek under Gen.
Bissell ; and was successively Inspector General, Lieute&ant Colonel, and
Colonel ; took command, in 1820, at Fort Snelling, and died in Washington
City, August 20, 1828. L. C. D.

^Capt. Geo. Gooding, of Massachusetts, entered the service, in 1808, as an
ensign ; promoted to Second Lieutenant, in 1810 ; was wounded in the battle of
Tippecanoe, in 1811 ; promoted to a First Lieutenant, in 1812, and a Captain,
in 1814 ; he was disbanded in 1821, and was Sutler at Prairie du Chien from
September, 1821. till 1827, and subsequently died. L. C. D.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 143

you are a brave man, and we are all Mends now." Appar-
ently the old man considered this reminiscence an excellent
jest, for he laughed heartily.

N^o tribe consider revenge a more sacred duty than the Win-
nebagoes. It was their ancient custom to take five lives for
one, and it is notorious on the frontiers, that no blood of thdirs
has been shed, even in modem days, that has not been fully
avenged. They used, too, to wear some part of the body of a
slain enemy about them as a testimonial of prowess. We well
remember a grim Winnebago, who was wont to present him-
self before the whites, who passed the Portage of the Fox and
Wisconsin Rivers, with a human hand hanging on his breast.
He had taken it from a Yankee soldier at Tippecanoe.

It was not difficult to stir up such a people to hostility, and,
moreover, circumstances favored the design of the Dakotas.
There is, or was, a village of Winnebagoes on the Black River,
not far from the Dakota town of which Wa-ba-shaw is chief.
The two tribes are descended from the same stock, as their
languages abundantly prove, and the claims of common origin
have been strenghtened by frequent intermarriages. I^ow, it
happened, that at the time when Too-pun-kah Zeze was put
to death at Fort Snelling^ the Red-Bird was absent from his
Winnebago village, on an expedition against the Chippewas.
He returned unsuccessful, and, consequently, sullen and mab
content Till this time^ he had been noted among his tribe for
his friendly disposition towards the "men with hats," as the
Indians call the whites, and among the traders, for his scrupu-
lous honesty. However, this man, from whom no white per-
son beyond the frontier would have anticipated injury, was
easily induced to commit a bloody and unprovoked outrage.

Certain Dakota ambassadors arrived at the Red-Bird^s vil-
lage, with a lie in their mouths. "You have become a by-
word of reproach among us," said they; "you have just given
the Chippewas reason to laugh at you, and the Big Knives also
laugh at you. Lo! while they were among you, they dared
not offend you, but now they have caused Wa-man-goos-ga-
ra-ha and his companion to be put to death, and they have

144 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

cut their bodies into pieces not bigger than the spots in a bead
garter." The tale was believed, and a cry for vengeance arose
throughout the village. It was decided that something must
be done, and the Dakota envoys promised to lend a helping
hand.

A few days before, two keel-boats had ascended the river,
laden with provisions for the troops at Fort Snelling. They
passed the mouth of Black Eiver with a full sheet, so that a
few Winnebagoes, who were there encamped, had some diffi-
culty in reaching them with their canoes. They might have
taken both boats, for there were but three fire-locks on board ;
nevertheless, they offered no injury. They sold fish and
venison to the boatmen, on amicable terms, and suffered them
to pursue their journey unmolested. We mention this trifling
circumstance, merely because it was afterwards reported in the
St. Louis papers, that the crews of these boats had abused
these Winnebagoes shamefully, which assuredly was not the
case.* The wind died away before the boats reached the vil-
lage of Wa-ba-shaw,t which is situated on the west ban!: of
the Mississippi, twelve or fifteen miles above the mouth of
Black River. Here the Dakotas peremptorily commanded
them to put ashore, which they did. ^o reason was assigned
for the order. Upwards of five hundred warriors imm-ediately
crowded on board. A passenger who was well acquainted
with the Dakotas, observed that they brought no women with
them as usual; that they were painted black — which signifies
either grief or hostility ; that they refused to shake hands with
the boatmen; and that their speech was brief and sullen. He
instantly communicated his observations to Mr. Lindsay, who
commanded the boats, and advised him to push on, before
the savages should have discovered that the party were wholly

♦To page 162, vol. ii, of our Collections, we appended a note from Gov.
Reynolds's Life and Times, which probably embodied the newspaper accounts of
the pretended "shameful abuse of the Winnebagoes" — that the crews of these
boats, on their upward trip, had stopped at &, Winnebago camp, got them all
drunk, and then forced six or seven stupefied sqiiaws on board for corrupt and
brutal purposes, and kept them during the voyage to Fort Snelling, and on
their return. Hence the attack on the boats by the Winnebagoes when they
became sober and conscious of the iniquity done them. But this emphatic
denial by Mr, Snelling, of this infamous charge, and the fact that Judge
Lockwood, in his narrative, and of Gen. Smith and Mr. Neill in their Histories,
are silent on the subject, should brand it as utterly without foundation.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 145

■unarmed. Lindsay, a bold-hearted Kentuckian, assumed the
tone of command, and peremptorily ordered tlie Dakotas
ashore. They, probably, thought that big words would be
seconded with hard blows, and complied. The boats pushed
on, several Indians pursued them along the shore for several
miles, with speech of taunt and defiance, but they offered no
further molestation.

The Dakota villages* higher up showed much ill-will, but
no disposition, or rather no courage, to attack. Altogether
appearances w^ere so threatening, that on his arrival at Fort
Snellin^o:, Mr. Lindsay communicated what he had seen to the
commanding officer, and asked that his crew should be fur-
nished with arms and ammunition. The request was
granted; his thirty-two men were provided with thirty-two
muskets, and a barrel of ball-cartridges. Thus secured against
attack the boats commenced the descent of the river.

In the meanwhile, the Eed Bird had cogitated upon what
he had heard, every tittle of which he believed, and had come
to the conclusion, that the honor of his race required the blood
of two Americans at least. He, therefore, got into his canoe,
with Wekaw, or The Sun, and two others, and paddled to
Prairie Du Chien. When he got there he waited upon Mr.
Boilvin, in the most friendly manner, and begged to be re-
garded as one of the staunchest friends of the Americans.
The venerable Agent admitted his claims, but absolutely re-
fused to give him any whiskey. The Winnebago Chief then
applied to a trader in the town, who relying on his general
good character, did not hesitate to furnish him with an eight
gallon keg of spirits, the value of which was to be paid in furs,
in the succeeding autumn.

There was an old colored woman in the village,, whose five
sons had never heard that they were inferior beings, either
from the Indians or the Canadian French. Therefore, having
never considered themselves degraded, they were not degraded ;
on the contrary, they ranked with the most respectable in-

*Red Wing and Kaposia, says Neill. L. C. D.

146 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

habitants of the place. We knew them well. One of them
was the village blacksmith; the others were substantial farm-
ers. Their father was a Frenchman, and their name was
Gagnier.

One of these men owned a farm three miles from Prairie
Du Chien, where he lived with his wife, who was a white wo-
man, two children, and a hired man nam.ed Lipcap. Thither
the Red Bird repaired with his three companions, sure of a
fair reception, for Re^istre Gagnier had always been noted for
his humanity to the poor, especially the Indians.

Registre Gagnier invited his savage visitors to enter, hung
the kettle over the fire, gave them to eat, and smoked the pipe
of peace with them. The Red Bird was the last man on earth
whom he would have feared; for they were well acquainted
with each other, and had reciprocated good oflicea. The In-
dians remained several hours under Gagnier' s hospitable roof.
At last, when the farmer least expected it, the Winnebago
Chief leveled his gun, and shot him down dead on his hearth-
stone. Lipcap was slain at the same instant by Wekaw. Ma-
dam Gagnier turned to fly with her infant of eighteen months.
As she was about to leap through the window, the child was
torn from her arms by Wekaw, stabbed, scalped and thrown
violently on the floor, as dead. The murderer then attacked
the woman; but gave way when she snatched up a gun that
was leaning against the wall, and presented it to his breast.
She then effected her escape. Her eldest son, a lad of ten
years, also shunned the murderers, and they both arrived in
the village at about the same time. The alarm was soon given
but when the avengers of blood arrived at poor Registre Gag-
nier's house, they found in it nothing living but his mangled
infant It was carried to the village, and, strange as it may
seem, recovered.*

The Red Bird and his companions immediately proceeded
from the scene of their crime to the rendezvous of their band.
During their absence, thirty-seven of the warriors, who acknowl-

*G«n. Smith, ou the authority of Judge Doty, states that this tragedy o<^
curred on the 28th of June, 1827 ; Judge Lockwood says the 26th, and Niles
Register says the 24th. Nelll follows Lockwood's chronology. L. C. D.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 147

edged the authority of Ked Bird, had assembled, with their
wives and children, near the mouth of Bad Axe River. They
received the murderers with exceeding great joy, and loud ap-
probation of their exploit. The keg of liquor was immedi-
ately set abroach, the Red Men began to drink, and, as their
spirits rose, to boast of what they had already done, and in-
tended to do. Two days did they continue to revel; and on
the third, the source of their excitement gave out. They
were, at about four in the afternoon, dissipating the last fumes
of their excitement in the scalp dance, when they descried one
of the keel-boats before mentioned, approaching. Forthwith
a proposal to take her, and massacre the crew, was made, and
carried by acclamation. They counted upon doing this with-
out risk; for they had examined her on the way up, and sup-
posed that there were no arms on board.

Mr. Lindsay's boats had descended the river together as far
as the village of Wa-ba-shaw, where they expected an attack.
The Dakotas on shore were dancing the war-dance, and hailed
their approach with insults and menaces; but did not, never-
theless, offer to obstruct their passage. The whites now sup-
posed the danger over, and a strong wind at that moment be-
ginning to blow up stream, the boats parted company. That
which sat deepest in the water had the advantage of the under
current, and, of course, gained several miles in advance of the
other.

So strong was the wind, that all of the force of sweeps could
scarcely stem it, and, by the time the foremost boat was near
the encampment, at the mouth of the Bad Axe, the crew were
very willing to stop and rest. One or two Frenchmen, or half-
breeds, who were on board, observed hostile appearances on
shore, and advised the rest to keep the middle of the stream;
but their counsel was disregarded. Most of the crew were
Americans, who, as usual with our countrymen, combined a
profoimd ignorance of Indian character with a thorough
contempt for Indian prowess. They urged the boat directly
toward the camp, with all the force of the sweeps. There
were sixteen men on deck. It may be well to observe here,
11

148 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

that this, like all keel-boats used in the Mississippi valley, was
built almost exactly on the model of the Erie and Middlesex
canal boats.

The men were rallying their French companions on their
apprehensions, and the boat* was Within thirty yards of the
shore, when suddenly the trees and rocks rang with the blood-
chilling, ear-piercing tones of the war-whoop, and a volley of
rifle balls rained upon the deck. Happily, the Winnebagoes
had not yet recovered from the effects of their debauch, and
their arms were not steady. One man only fell by their fire.
He was a little negro named Peter. His leg was dreadfully
shattered, and he afterwards died of the wound. Then Peter

began to curse and to swear, d g his fellows for leaving

him to be shot at like a Christmas turkey; but finding that
his reproaches had none effect, he also managed to drag him-
self below. All this passed in as little time as it will take to
read this paragraph.

Presently a voice hailed the boat in the Sac tongiie, demand-
ing to know if the crew were English? A half-breed Sac,
named Beauchamp, answered in the affirmative. "Then,"
said the querist, "come on shore, and we will do you no harm,
for we are your brethren, the Sacs.'' "Dog," retorted Beau-
champ, "no Sac would attack us thus cowardly. If you want
us on shore, you must come and fetch us."

With that, a second volley came from the shore; but as the
men were now lying prone in the bottom of the boat, below
the water line, they all escaped but one. One man, an Ameri-
can, named Stewart, fell. He had risen to return the first
fire, and the muzzle of his musket protruding through a loop-
hole, showed some Winnebago where to aim. The bullet
struck him under the left arm, and passed directly through his
heart. He fell dead, with his finger on the trigger of his un-
discharged gun. It was a hot day, and before the fight was
over, the scent of the gunpowder could not overpower thb
stench of the red puddle around him.

♦This advance boat was the Oliver H. Perry according to Gen. Smith's Hist.
Wisconsin. L. C. D.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 149

The Winnebagoes encouraged by the non-resistance, now
rushed to their canoes^ with intent to board. One venerable
old man endeavored to dissuade them. He laid hold on one
of the canoes, and would, perhaps, have succeeded in retain-
ing it; but in the heat of his argument, a ball from the boat
hit him on the middle finger of the peace-making hand. Very
naturally enraged at such unkind treatment from his friends,
he loosed the canoe, hurried to his wigwam for his gun, and
took an active part in the remainder of the action. In the
mean while, the white men had recovered from their first
panic, and seized their arms. The boarders were received with
a very severe discharge. In one canoe, two savages were killed
with the same bullet. Their dying struggles upset the canoe,
and the rest were obliged to swim on shore, where it was some
time before they could restore their arms to fighting order,
Several more were wounded, and those who remained unhurt,
put back, satisfied that a storm was not the best mode of attack.
Two, however, persevered. They were together in one
canoe, and approached the boat astern, where there were no
holes through which the whites could fire upon them. They
soon leaped on board. One seized the long steering oar, or
rudder. The other jumped upon deck, where he halted, and
discharged five muskets, which had been left there by the
crew fled below, through the deck into the bottom of the
boat. In this manner he wounded one man very severely.
After this exploit, he hurried to the bow, where he seized a
long pole, and, with the assistance of the steersman, succeeded
in grounding the boat on a sand-bar, and fixing her fast under
the fire of his people. The two Winnebago boatmen then be-
gan to load and fire, to the no small annoyance of the crew.
He at the stem, was soon dispatched. One of the whites ob-
served his position through a crack, and gave him a mortal
wound through the boards. Still, he struggled to get over-
board, probably to save his scalp. But his struggles were
feeble, and a second bullet terminated them before he could
effect his object. After the fight was over, the man who slew
him took his scalp.

150 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

The bow of the boat was open, and the warrior there still
kept his station, out of sight, excepting when he stooped to
^TOy which he did five times. His third shot broke the arm^
and passed through the lungs, of the brave Beauchauip. At
this sight, one or two began to speak of surrender, ^'l^o,
friends," cried the dying man; ^^you will not save your lives
so. Fight to the last; for they will show no mercy. If they
get the better of you, for God's sake throw me overboard. Do
not let them get my hair." He continued to exhort them to
resistance, as long as his breath lasted, and died with the words
"fight on," on his lips. Before this time, however, his slayer
had also taken his leave of life. A sailor, named Jack Mande-
ville,* shot him through the head, and he fell overboard, car-
rying his gun with him.

From that moment Mandeville assumed the command of the
boat. A few had resolved to take the skiff, and leave the rest
to their fate. They had already cast off the rope. Jack inter-
posed, declaring that he would shoot the first man^ and bayonet
the second, who would persevere. They submitted. Two
more had hidden themselves in the bow of the boat, out of
sight, but not out of danger. After a while the old tar missed
them, sought them, and compelled them by threats of instant
death, enforced by pricks of his bayonet, to leave their hiding
place, and take share in the business in hand. Afterwards
they fought like bull dogs. It was well for them that Mande-
ville acted as he did; for they had scarcely risen when a score
of bullets, at least, passed through the place where they had
been lying.

After the two or three first volleys the fire had slackened,
but it was not, therefore, the less dangerous. The Indians
had the advantage of superior numbers, and could shift their
positions at pleasure. The whites were compelled to lie
in the bottom of the boat, below the water mark, for its
sides were without bulwarks. Every bullet passed
through and through. It was only at intervals, and
very warily, that they could rise to fire; for the flash of

•This was the Saucy Jack mentioned by Judge Lockwood and Gov. Reynolds.

L. C. D.

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 151

every gim showed the position of the marksman, and was in-
stantly followed by the reports of two or three Indian rifles.
On the other hand, they were not seen, and being thinly scat-
tered over a large boat, the Winnebagoes could but guess their
positions. The fire was, therefore, slow; for none, on either
side, cared to waste ammunition. Thus for upwards of three
hours, the boatmen lay in blood and bilge-water, deprived of
the free use of their limbs, and wholly unable to extricate
themselves.

At last, as the night fell, Mandeville came to the ' conclu-
sion that darkness would render the guns of his own party
wholly useless, while it would not render the aim of the Win-
nebagoes a jot less certain. He, therefore, as soon as it was
dark, stoutly called for assistance, and sprang into the water.
Four more followed him. The balls rained around them,
passing through their clothes; but they persisted, and the boat
was soon afloat. Seeing their prey escaping the Winneba-
goes raised a yell of mingled rage and despair, and gave the
whites a farewell volley. It was returned, with three hearty
cheers, and ere a gun could be re-loaded, the boat had floated
out of shooting distance.

For half the night, a wailing voice, apparently that of an
old man, was heard, following the boat, at a safe distance,
however. It was conjectured that it was the father of him
whose body the boat was bearing away. Subsequent inquiry
proved this supposition to be correct.

Thirty-seven Indians were engaged in this battle, seven of
whom were killed, and fourteen were wounded. They man-
aged to put six hundred and ninety-three balls into and through
the boat. Two of the crew were killed outright, two mortally,
and two slightly wounded.* Jack Mandeville's courage and
presence of mind undoubtedly saved the rest, as well as the
boat; but we have never heard that he was rewarded in any
way or shape.

♦Lockwood's Narrative also states that two whites were killed and four
wounded ; while Gen. Smith asserts, that the engagement lasted three hours,
two whites killed and six wounded, and that it was supposed ten or twelve
Indians were killed, and a great number wounded. L. C. D.

152 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Mr. Lindsay's boat — the rear one, reached the mouth of the
Bad Axe about midnight. The Indians opened a fire upon
her, which was promptly returned. There was a light on
board, at which the first gun was probably aimed, for that ball
only hit the boat. All the rest passed over harmless in th^
darkness.*

Great was the alarm at Prairie du Chien when the boats
arrived there. The people left their houses and farms, and
crowded into the dilapidated Fort. ]N'evertheless, they showed
much spirit, and speedily established a very effective discipline.
An express was immediately sent to Galena, and another to
Fort Snelling, for assistance. A company of upwards of a
hundred volunteers soon arrived from Galena, and the minds
of the inhabitants were quieted.

In a few days, four imperfect companies of the Fifth Infan-
try arrived from Fort Snelling. The commanding officer or-
dered a march on the Eed Bird's village; but as the volun-
teers refused to obey, and determined to return home, he was
obliged to countermand it.

The consternation of the people of the Lead Mines waa
great. Full half of them fled from the country. Shortly
after, however, when General Atkinson arrived with a full
regiment, a considerable body of volunteers joined him from
Galena, and accompanied him to the Portage of Wisconsin, to
fight with or receive the submission of the Winnebagoes.

The Red Bird there appeared, in all the paraphernalia of an
Indian Chief and warrior, and surrendered himself to justice,
together with hi^ companions in the murder of Gagnier, and
one of his band, who had taken an active part in the attack on
the boats. They were incarcerated at Praii^ie du Chien. A
dreadful epidemic broke out there about this time, and he died
in prison. He knew that his death was certain, and did not
shrink from it.

*It is stated in Neill's Minnesota, that among the passengers on Lindsay'*
boat was Joseph Snelling, a talented son of the Colonel, who wrote a story of
deep interest, based on the facts narrated. This we presume was Wm. J.
Snelling, the writer of this narrative. As for the date of the ftttack on these
keel boats, Judge Lockwood gives it as June 26th, which Neill follows ; Gen.
Smith, on Judge Doty's authority, we presume, says the 30th. Whatever was
the real date, one thing is quite certain, that the murder of Gagnier's family
and the boat attack, transpired the same day, and the next day the first of the

1867] Early Prairie du Chien 153

In the course of a year, the people of the Lead Mines in-
creased in number and in strength, and encroached upon the
Winnebago lands. The Winnebagoes complained in vain.
The next spring, the murderers of Methode, and the other In-
dian prisoners, were tried, convicted, and sentenced to death.
A deputation of the tribe went to Washington to solicit their
pardon. President Adams granted it, on the implied condition
that the tribe would cede the lands then in possession of the
miners. The Winnebagoes have kept their word — ^the land has
been ceded, and Madame Gagnier has been compensated for
the loss of her husband, and the mutilation of her infant. We
believe that she received, after waiting two years, the magnifi-
cent sum of two thousand dollars.*

We will close this true account of life beyond the frontier,
with an anecdote which plrces the Winnebago character in a
more amiable light than anything already related. The mili-
tia of Prairie du Chien, immediately after the affair of the
boats, seized the old chief De Kau-ray — the who has
already been mentioned. He was told that if the Red-Bird
should not be given up within a certain time, he was to die
in his stead. This he steadfastly believed. Finding that con-
finement injured his health, he requested to be permitted to
range the country on his parole. The demand was granted.
He Avas bidden to go whither he pleased during the day, but
at sun-set he was required to return to the Port on pain of
being considered an old woman. He observed the condition
religiously. At the first tap of the retreat, De Kau-ray was
sure to present himself at the gate; and this he continued to
do till General Atkinson set him at liberty.

♦At the treaty held at Prairie du Chien with the Winnebagoes, in 1829,
provision was made for two sections of land to Therese Gagnier and her two
children, Francois and Louise ; and for the United States t6 pay Therese
Gagnier the sum of fifty dollars per annum for fifteen years, to be deducted
from the annuity to said Indians. L. C. D.

154 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

Indian Honor: an Incident of
the Winnebago War

The following incident, found in the Western Courier, pub-
lished at Kavenna, Ohio, February 2i6, 1830, was read by the
Secretary at a meeting of the Wisconsin Histor'ical Society, in
December, 1862:

"There is no class of human beings on earth who hold a
pledge more sacred and binding, than do the North American
Indians. An instance of this was witnessed during the Win-
nebago war of 182Y, in the person of De Kau-ray, a celebrated
chief of that nation, who, with four other Indians of his tribe,
was taken prisoner at Prairie du Chien. Col. Snelling, of the
Fifth Eegiment of Infantry, who then commanded that garri-
son, dispatched a young Indian into the nation, with orders
to inform the other chiefs of De Kau-ray's band, that un-
less those Indians who were the perpetrators of the horrid
murders of some of our citizens, were brought to the Fort and
given up within ten days, De Kau-ray and the other four
Indians, who were reta:ined as hostages, would be shot at the
end of that time. The awful sentence was pronounced in the
presence of De Kau-ray, who, though proclaiming his own
innocence of the outrages which had been committed by others
of his nation, declared that he feared not death, though it
would be attended with serious consequences, inasmuch as he
had two affectionate wives, and a large family of small chil-
dren, who were entirely dependent on him for their support;
but, if necessary, he was willing to die for the honor of his
nation.

"The young Indian had been gone several days, and no in-
telligence was yet received from the murderers. The dreadful
day being near at hand, and De Kau-ray being in a bad
Btate of health, asked permission of the Colonel to go to the
river to indulge in his long-accustomed habit of bathing, in

1867] Winnebago War 155

order to improve his health. Upon which, Col. Snelling told
him if he would promise, on the honor of a chief, that he
would not leave the toAvn, he might have his liberty, and en-
joy all his privileges, until the day of the appointed execu-
tion. Accordingly, he first gave his hand to the Colonel,
thanking him for his friendly offer, then raised both his hands
aloft, and in the most solemn adjuration, promised that he
would not leave the bounds prescribed, and said if he had a
hundred lives, he would sooner lose them all than forfeit his
word, or deduct from his proud nation one particle of its
boasted honor. He was then set at liberty. He was advised
to flee to the wilderness, and make his escape. 'But no,'
Baid he 'do you think I prize life above honor? Or, that I
would betray a confidence reposed in me, for the sake of sav-
ing my life V He then complacently remained until nine days
of the ten which he had to live had elapsed, and nothing
heard from the nation vnth regard to the apprehension of the
murderers, his immediate death became apparent; but no al-
teration could be seen in the countenance of the chief. It so
happened that on that day Gen. Atkinson arrived with his
troops from Jefferson Barracks, and the order for the execu-
tion was countermanded, and the Indians permitted to repair
to their home."*

•The De Kau-ray mentioned in this narrative was the "grand old chief"
whose Indian name was Scha-chip-ka-ka, or Ko-no-kah I>e Kau-ray, or The
Eldest De Kau-ray, who died on the Wisconsin River, April 20, 1836, in his
ninetieth year. Col. D. M. Parkinson, in speaking of the events of the sum-
mer of 1827, in his paper on Pioneer Life in Wisconsin, published in the third
volume of Wisconsin Historical Collections, says: "At the time of. our arrival
at Prairie du Chien, the citizens had in their custody, as hostages for the good
conduct of their nation, three Indians, one of whom was the well known chief
De Kau-ray. He disclaimed on the part of his nation, as a whole, any inten-
tion to engage in hostilities with the whites ; he was, however, retained some
time as a hostage before being released." In the second volume of the same
Collections, page 167, Judge Lockwood probably refers to De Kau-ray's captivity.
Neill, page 397, mentions it ; and Col. Snelling, in his reminiscences, speaks
more fully of it than any other writer, except the one who has anonymously
left us this paper on Indian Honor.

It is frequently exceedinigly difficult to trace Indian chiefs by their signatures
as appended to treaties, so various is the spelling of their names by the different
secretaries employed on those occasions. Chou-ke-ka, The Spoon, or De Kau-ray,
signed the treaty of 1816— the same mentioned by Augustin Grignon, in the third
volume of Collections as Chou-ga-rah, or The Ladle— the son of a French trader
De Kau-ray, and the father of the War-Eagle and his brothers.

Hekt-shah-wau-saip-shaw-kaw, or The War-Eagle, or in simpler orthog-
raphy, ScHA-CHip-KA-KA, Signed the treaties of 1828, 1829 and 1832. Mrs.
KiNZiE, who knew him personally, describes him as "the most noble, dignified
and venterable of his own, or. Indeed, of any other tribe. His fine Roman
countenance, rendered still more striking by his bald head, with one solitary
tuft of long silvery hair, neatly tied, 1 ailing back on his shoulders; his per-
fectly neat, appropriate dress, almost without ornament, and his courteous de-
meanor, never laid aside, under any circumstances, all combined to give him
the highest place in the consideration of all who knew him. His traits of
character were not less grand and striking, than were his personal appearance
and deportment.

156 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

The Winnebago Outbreak

In a speech, Gen. Lewis Cass, at Burlington, Iowa, in June,
1855, made the following reference to the Winnebago out-
break in 1827:

*^ Twenty-eight years have elapsed," said the venerable states-
man, "since I passed along the borders of this beautiful State.
^Time and chance happen to all men,' says the writer of old.
And time and chance have happened to me, since I first be-
came identified With the West. In 1827 I heard that the
Winnebagoes had assumed an attitude of hostility toward the
whites, and that great fear and anxiety prevailed among the
border settlers of the ^Northwestern frontier. I went to Green
Bay, where I took a canoe with twelve voyageurs and went up
the Fox river and passed over the Portage into the Wisconsin.
We went down the Wisconsin until we met an ascending boat
in the charge of Ramsay Crooks, who was long a resident of
the Northwest. Here we ascertained that the Winnebagoes had
assumed a hostile attitude, and that the settlers of Prairie du
Chien were apprehensive of being suddenly attacked and mas-
sacred. After descending about seventy miles farther, we came
in sight of the Winnebago camp. It was situated upon a high
prairie, not far from the river, and as he approached the shore
he saw the women and children running across the prairie, in
ar opposite direction, which he knew to be a bad sign. After
reaching the shore he went up to the camp. At first the In-
dians were sullen; particularly the young men. He talked

A cousin of the Wak-Bagle was Wau-Kaun-Hah-kaw, or Snake Skim, com-
monly called Wau-kon, or Washington De Kau-bay. The word wnu-kon in
Chippewa means devil. Wau-kon De Kau-ray was a signer of the treaties of
1829 and 1832. He is still living at an advanced age.

Gen. H. L. Dousman, a resident of Prairie du Chien since 1826, states in A
letter to the Secretary of the Society : "Mr, ITolettb and all the old traders
In the country, when I first came here, told me that the commonly pronounced
name of De Kau-bay had its French origin ii> Descabie. Old Gray-Haired
Dd Kau-bay, and others of the family, you know, had a good deal of white
blood in them. Old Gray-Haired De Kau-bay had his village nea,r the Wis-
consin Portage ; Wau-kawn Hau-kau, or 8nake-Ekin, commonly called Wau-kon
Du Kau-bay, the principal speaker or orator of the Winnebago nation, had
his village on the Mississippi, about thirty miles above Prairie du Chien; and
One-Eyed De Kau-bay had his village on Black River." L. C. D.

1867] Winnebago War 157

with them awhile, and they finally consented to smoke the cal-
umet. He afterwards learned that one of the young Indians
cocked his gun, and was about to shoot him, when he was forci-
bly prevented by an old man, who struck down his arm. He
passed down to Prairie Du Chien, where he found the inhabit-
ants in the greatest state of alarm. After organizing the mili-
tia, he had to continue his voyage to St. Louis. He stopped at
Galena. There were then no white inhabitants on either bank
of the Mississippi, north of the Missouri line. Arrived at St.
Louis, after organizing a force under General Clark and Gen-
eral Atkinson, he ascended the Illinois in his canoe, and
passed into Lake Michigan without getting out of it. The
water had filled the swamps at the head of Chicago river, which
enabled the voyageurs to navigate his canoe through without
serious difficulty. Where Chicago now is he found two fami-
lies, one of which was that of his old friend Kinzie. Thi^ was
the first and last time he had been at Burlington. ISTew coun-
tries have their disadvantages of which those who come at a
later day know little. Forty years ago flour sold at two dol-
lars per barrel, and there were himdreds of acres of com in the
West that w^ere not harvested. The means of transportation
were too expensive to allow of their being carried to market."

Gen. Dodge to Gen. Atkinson

Galena, August 26, 1827.
Dear General: — Capt. Henry, the Chairman of the Com-
mittee of Safety, will wait on you at Prairie Du Chien, before
your departure from that place. Capt. Henry is an intelli-
gent gentleman, who understands well the situation of the
country. The letter accompanying Gov. Cass' communication
to you has excited in some measure the people in this part of
the country. As the principal part of the efficient force is
preparing to accompany you on your expedition up the Guis-
consin, it might have a good effect to send a small regular force
to this part of the country, and in our absence they might ren-
der protection to this region.

158 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

I feel the importance of your having as many mounted men
as the country can afford, to aid in punishing those insolent
Winnebagoes who are wishing to unite, it would seem, in com-
mon all the disaffected Indians on our borders. From infor-
mation received last night, some straggling Indians have been
seen on our frontiers.

Your friend and obedient servant.
To Gten. H. Atkinson, Prairie du Chien. H. DoDQE.

NOTE ON THE WINNEBAGO WAR.

There has repeatedly, during the past dozeu or fifteen years, appeared in
the papers an article purporting to be An Indian Race for Life. It stated,
that soon after the Winnebago difficulties in 1827, that a Sioux Indian killed a
Winnebago Indian while out hunting near the mouth of Root River ; that the
Winnebagoes were indignant at the act, and two thousand of them assembled at
Prairie du Chien, and demanded of Col, Taylor, commanding there, the pro-
curement and surrender of the murderer. An officer was sent to the Sioux,
and demanded the murderer, who was given up ; and finally was surrendered
to the Winnebagoes, on condition that he should have a chance for his life —
giving him ten paces, to run at a given signal, and twelve Winnebagoes to pur-
sue, each armed only with a tomahawk and scalping knife — but he out-ran
them all, and saved his life.

Gen. H. L. Dousman and B. W. Brisbois, old and well known residents of
Prairie du Chien, declare that no such incident ever occurred there, and that
there is "not one word of truth in the statement." This note is appended
here that future historians of our State may understand that it is only a
myth or fanciful story. L. C. D.

A Western Reminiscence

By Col. Abram Edwards

In the year 1818, I was a resident of Detroit, and the owner
of a large mercantile establishment located in that place, and
from this, had branches at Fort Grratiot, the out-let of Lake
Huron, and at Mackinaw, Green Bay, and Chicago. In May
of that year, business required my presence at each of the
branches, and I accompanied the army Pay-Master, Major
Phillips, who was ordered to pay the troops stationed at
tliose places, then military posts. We left Detroit in the
month of May in a small schooner for Mackinac, and from
thence on the same mode of conveyance, to Green Bay. After
our business was finished at the Bay, and we were looking for
a conveyance to Chicago, Inspector Gen. Wool arrived, and
requested we would not leave until he had inspected the

»This paper originally appeared in the Janesville Standard, of Sept. 12, 1855

1867] Western Reminiscence 159

troops, and he would accompany ns to that place. In the in-
terim, we purchased a bark canoe and had it fitted up for our
voyage. Major Z. Taylor, afterwards President, command-
ing the- post, furnished us with seven expert canoe-men to
manage our frail bark.

We left Green Bay garrison after dinner, and went to the
head of Sturgeon Bay, 40 miles, and encamped for the night.
The next morning we carried our canoe two and a half miles
over the portage to the shore of Lake Michigan, and, after get-
ting the baggage over, we were willing to encamp for the night.
The next morning foimd us in our canoe afloat on the waters
of the Lake, paddling our way to Chicago, where we arrived
the third day from our Lake shore encampment. On our
passage, although we frequently landed, we did not meet with
a white man — we were, however, informed one was trading
with the Indians at Milwaukee. At Twin Rivers, Manitowoc,
Sheboygan and Milwaukee, the shore of the Lake was lined
with Indians — ^near Manitowoc many were out in canoes spear-
ing white fish. I am reminded of these reminiscences, having
recently noticed in the public prints a census of the inhabitants
of the cities and towns that have grown upon this very Lake
shore, which for beauty and population are equal to many of
the cities and towns of the old States, and which shores when
traversed were then peopled by savages, and indeed from the
shores of Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River, was one
wide waste of unoccupied country. Indeed, from Chicago to
Detroit, you had no track but the Indian path from one city
to the other, and without any shelter for the weary traveler;
where now, in Michigan, there is nearly one million of inhab-
itants, with all the facilities of conveyances and comfort, you
find in the older States.

The same may be said of the States of Illinois and Wiscon-
sin— two of the greatest grain producing States in the Union —
for their population, with farms and improvements, equal to
any in any part of the United States. Michigan, Illinois and
Wisconsin now contain a greater population than did the old
thirteen States, when we contended vdth England for our inde-
pendence.

i6o Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

This, reader, is truly a progressive age — ^within the last
thirty-seven years the three States herein named have grown in-
to existence, and now contain nearly three millions of people.
What flattering inducements are still held out here for the
hardy sons of lS<ew England — plenty of the best lands under
the sun are yet left unoccupied, and only want industry and
hardy hands to find plenty of gold, and without the fatigue
and expense of a journey to California for this precious metal.

The valley of Rock E-iver is the most beautiful and most
productive country I have even seen in any part of the United
States, from the head waters of the river to its entrance with
the Mississippi. But this I do not wish to say in disparage-
ment of thousands of acres in Illionis and Wisconsin, that
only want the husbandman with his team and plough to pro-
duce a rich harvest.

Chicago, in 1818, was only a garrison commanded by Major
Baker, with no settlements near — now it probably contains a
population of over 70,000, probably 10,000 more than can be
numbered in the old city of Albany. In June, 1818, from
the garrison at Chicago to Twin Rivers, 170 miles, on the west
shore of Lake Michigan, there was but one white man resident,
he an Indian trader. Since then, Chicago has become what it is,
a large city. Kenosha, Racine, Milwaukee and Sheboygan, all
incorporated cities; Port Washington, Manitowoc, Twin Riv-
ers and several other tovms, all important business places, have
grown into existence and now probably contain all together
150,000 souls, and the wide uncultivated waste of country then
lying between the western shore of Lake Michigan and the
Mississippi River, numbers now over two millions of inhabi-
tants.

When I look back over the last thirty-seven years of my
life, I can hardly realize the wonderful changes that have taken
place under my obser\^ation, in this country, and stiU much
greater may be expected for the next thirty years — ^what flat-
tering inducements are still held out for emigration to this
almost Western empire.

Janesviule, Aug. 30, 18'o5.

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report i6i

KEPORT AND COLLECTIONS

OF THE

STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OF WISCO^^SIK
Vol. V. FOE THE YEAR 1868. Part II.

Fourteenth Annual Report

Submitted Jat^uary 4, 1868.

The Executive Committee has never had a more pleasant
duty to perform than in making this, the fourteenth annual
report of its labors and thear results. The past year's ordinary
additions to the Library and Collections have been very satis-
factory in their extent and character, while the Tanh Collec-
tion has swollen the combined additions to undue and gratify-
ing proportions.

Receipts and Disbursements

The Treasurer's report shows the receipts of the year, in-
cluding the balance on hand at its commencement, to have
been $1,146.92, and the disbursements $1,127.63 — ^leaving an
unexpended balance of $19.29 in the Treasury. More than
nine-tenths of all the expenditures have been for the increase
of the Library. The Binding Fund is $108.10.

1 62 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

Library Additions

The ordinary Library additions for the year have been 660
volumes, and 669 pamphlets and unbound documents, making
together 1,319 volumes or works. Of these 650 volumes, 357
were by donation, and 293 by purchase. The Tank Library
has formed the extraordinary addition to our collection — com-
prising 4,812 volumes and 374 pamphlets; and counting the
ordinary and extraordinary additions together, we have a total
increase of 5,462 volumes and 1,043 pamphlets and unbound
documents, making the aggregate additions of the year 6,505,
and the total number now in the Library, bound and unbound,
31,505. Of the aggregate additions of the year, 376 volumes
are folios and 793 quartos — making now in the Library a total
of 1,500 folios and 1,747 quartos.

Progressive Library Increase

The past and present condition of the Library is shown in
the following table:

Date.

Volumes
added.

Documents

and
pamphlets .

Both
together.

Total in
library.

1854, Jan. 1

1,000

1,065

1,005

1,024

1,107

1,800

837

610

544

248

520

368

923

5,462

1,'666

2,000

300

959

500

723

1,134

711

2,373

356

226

806

2,811

1,043

14,942

50
2,000
3,065
1,305
1,988
1,607
2,528
1,971
1,321
2,917
604
746
1,174
3,734
6,505

1855, Jan. 2

2,050
5,115

1856, Jan. 1

1857, Jan. 6

6,420

1858, Jan. 1

8,403

1859, Jan. 4

10, 010

1860, Jan. 3

12,535

1861, Jan. 2

14,504
15,825

1862, Jan. 2

1863, Jan. 2

18,742

1864, Jan. 2

19,346

1865, Jan. 3

20,092

1866, Jan. 2

21,266

1867, Jan. 3

25,000

1868, Jan. 4

31,505

16,563

31,505

Principal Additions and Donors

The Tank Collection is decidedly the largest donation the
Society has ever received. It has come to us as the generous gift

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report 163

of Mrs. C. L. A. Tank, of Fort Howard, Wisconsin, and was
collected by her father, the late Rev. R. J. Van Der Meuleny
of Holland, who was a clergyman of liberal culture, and dur-
ing his lifetime accumulated this valuable collection on history,
travels, science and theology. It reached us in good condition,
in October, filling twenty-one large cases, the Legislature hav-
ing provided for the freight expenses from Holland. Though
in foreign languages, yet such a collection will prove a valu-
able acquisition to such a reference Library as ours, where the
wants of our citizens of all nationalities must needs be pro-
vided for, so far as it may be in our power to do so.

This Tank Collection, numbering altogether 4,812 volumes,
and 374 pamphlets, deserves a more special notice. It is rich
in works in fine old vellum binding — having 111 folios, 2,64
quartos, and 404 in smaller size, making a total of 779 bound
in veUum style. The total number of folios in this collection,
in vellum, sheep and paper binding, is 269; of quartos in
various bindings, 737. Many of these works are largely and
richly illustrated.

Among this Tank Collection are the following: Suetonius'
History of the Twelve Csesars in Latin, printed at Antwerp^.
1548; Marcobius' Commentary on Cicero, Lyons, 1560; Lu-
can's Pharsalia, Antwerp, 1564; a fine rare edition of the^
!N"ew Testament, Paris, 1568; a large folio Bible, in the Dutch
language, with numerous large copperplate engravings, bounds
in heavy Russia leather, with heavy brass clasps, Gorinchem,.
1748 ; a similar copy without engravings, Dort, 1729 ; another-
copy, small folio, with clasps, Amsterdam, 1796 ; also a 12 moc.
edition, bound in morocco, with clasps, with the Psahns set to»
music, Dort, 1769 ; Calvin Opera Omnia, in 9 vols, folio, Am-
sterdam, 1671; Travels of Nieuhoff, De Bruyer Baldseus,
and Montanus, in foreign countries, with fine copperplate en-
gravings, in 6 folio volumes, 1671-93; Dapper's Histories
of China, Arabia, Palestine, &c., copperplate engravings, S
vols, folio, 1672-'78; w^orks of Josephus, copperplate en-
gravings, folio, Amsterdam, 1772 ; Hubner's Geslacht Tafelen,

in 4 oblong folio volumes, a valuable work on the genealogy
12

164 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v.

of rojal and distinguished families of Europe, Leyden, 1722 ;
De Larrey's History of England, 4 folio volumes, 1728 ; Ver-
klaring der II. Serif t (a Biblical commentary), 8 volumes
folio, Amsterdam, 1743; Hedendaagsclie Histories, 37 vols.
8vo., Amsterdam, 1761 ; Encyclopedia, or Diotionarie Universal
Kaisonee, 58 vols, quarto, Yverden, 1772; Linngeus E'atural
History, 37 vols. 8vo., Amsterdam, 1781; Groot Placart
Booke, 9 vols, folio, Amsterdam, 1657-1796.

Ever grateful will our Society be to Mrs. Tank for her in-
valuable donation, and we trust it will long remain a® a bright
example and incentive to liberality in others, and as a means
of usefulness to the present and future generations.

We must next notice a very valuable contribution, which
we cannot estimate too highly, from Edwin B. Quiner — eleven
quarto volumes of mounted newspaper scraps relative to the
important part Wisconsin enacted in the late war. These em-
brace hundreds, if not thousands, of letters, written by "tKe
boys in blue'^ to their friends at home, and published in the
various local papers of the State, and were used to only a lim-
ited extent, in the preparation of Mr. Quiner's elaborate work
on the Eebellion. Arranged by regiments, and neatly mounted,
they will, when properly indexed as our Librarian shortly de-
signs doing, prove one of the very richest collections for his-
torical reference on all matters pertaining to Wisconsin's part
in the war for the Union, that we can ever expect to possess.
Mr. Quiner has also been mindful of the Society's wants in
presenting five other valuable works, and a nearly complete
set of the serial work of Byrne's Dictionary of Mechanics.
For all these contributions, as well as former gifts, the Society
returns to Mr. Quiner its grateful thanks, mingled with sin-
cere sympathies for his declining health.

To the Rhode Island Historical Society, we are indebted for
55 volumes of the legislative acts and journals of that State
from 1847 to 1865 ; to the Chicago Historical Society, for 39
volumes and 59* pamphlets, and documents pertaining to Illi-
nois legislation and institutions; D. T. Valentine, for 39 vol-
umes on the government and institutions of E'ew York city;

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report 165

Dr. Samuel A. Green, for 17 volumes and 173 pamphlets;
Hon. D. J. Powers, a volume of the Scientific American and
120 pamphlets, audi several serials; Governor L. Fairchild,
7 volumes and 67 pamphlets; Messrs. Atwood & Rublee, 6
volumes and 59 pamphlets; Hon. T. O. Howe, 14 volumes
and 40 pamphlets; General H. E. Paine, 17 volumes; Gen-
eral J. K. Proudfit, 12 volumes; Joseph Sabin, 10 volumes;
I\ A. Holden, 4 volumes and 12 pamphlets; Hon. W. D.
Mclndoe, 8 volumes and 2 pamphlets; Joel Munsell, 1 vol-
ume and 51 pamphlets; H. M. Page, 5 volumes; Adjutant
General of New York, 6 volumes; Adjutant General of Mis-
souri, 4 volimies; State Library of Michigan, 4 volumes;
James Smith, of Monroe, Charlevoix's History of St. Domingo,
2 volumes quarto, 1730, and the works of Las Casas, 2 vol-
umes; Colonel S. V. Shipman, 2 volumes and 11 pamphlets;
A. H. Worthen, the Geological Survey of Illinois, 2 volumes
quarto; Dr. T. H. Wynne, 2 valuable volumes on the History
of the Dividing Line, and other Byrd Papers; Hon. Ezra
Cornell, 4 volumes; S. G. Drake, 2 volumes and 1 pamphlet;
Miss Eliza S. Quincy, 1 volume and 5 pamphlets; Young
Men's Association, Albany, 19 pamphlets; Bangs, Merwin &
Co., 11 pamphlets; G. W. Fahnestock, 7 pamphlets; D. S.
Durrie, 6 pamphlets; and many others of a lesser number of
books and pamphlets.

Character of Additions

While we have added largely to our historical department,
from Practica de Aegritudinihus, by J. M. Savonarolae, folio,
Florence, 1479, which is the oldest volume in our Library;
Sagard's Early History, of Canada, and his Voyage du Pays
des Hurons, and Oglethorpe's Account of South Carolina
and Georgia, 1732, with various histories and travels down
to the close of the war of the Rebellion, we have also added
largely to our newspaper, genealogical, scientific and statistical
departments. Fully fifty volumes on genealogy and local his-
tory have been secured; 12 volumes of the Scientific Ameri-
can have been obtained towards completing our set of that

1 66 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

valuable work, and progress has been made in our eSorts to
complete our sets of serials and periodicals, and reports of tbe
Adjutant Generals of the several States during the war. We
have during the year, added something to our collection from
the small and select editions of rare works on American his-
tory, issued by Munsell, Shea, Woodward, Dawson, Wiggins.
Sabin, Dodge and others.

Newspaper Department

During the year we have had 73 volumes of newspapers from
our files bound, of which 57 were Wisconsin files; and 52
volumes have been purchased and donated, making the total
addition of the year 125 volumes, and the entire number in
the collection 1,421 volumes. Of the new additions, 6 vol-
umes were published in the last century the Independent Whig.
at Philadelphia, in 1721 ; two volumes of the Pennsylvania
Gazette, by Dr. Franklin, 1741-'46; Pennsylvania Chronicle,
1768, and the North Briton, 2 volumes, 1769. We have noT\
144 volumes of bound newspaper files, published in the lasl
century. In the immense collection on American historj
which Peter Porce was fifty years in gathering, and which he
has recently sold to the General Government, thore were 245
bound newspaper files of the last century — exceeding ours
nearly two-fifths; while his collection in this century, was
scarcely the half of ours. It is questionable, if, in all respectSj
a better collection than ours can be found in our country.

Seventy magazines, newspapers and serials come i^egularlj'
to the Society, and all except five as donations. These are
all bound as frequently as enough of a kind to form a con-
venient sized volume accumulate; if they were suffered to go
unbound for a few years, the cost of binding would prove a
matter of serious difficulty to meet.

Map and Atlas Department

From the Tank Collection, and other sources, we have re-
ceived some important additions to this department Atlas

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report 167

Major, 4 vols, folio, Amsterdam, 1Y30; Moll's Atlas, 1 vol.,
large quarto, 1729; Covens and Mortier's Atlas, 2 vols., fo-
lio, Amsterdam, 1745; Palairefs Atlas Methodique, 1 vol.,
folio, 1755 ; three portfolios of maps, of various dates, of Ger-
man Provinces; an illustrated map of Palestine, of Biblical
localities, on rollers; and a Chronological or Historical Table,
on rollers, 1818 — all from the Tank Collection, Atlas Uni-
versal, 1849, from David Plolt; Farmers' large map of Wis-
consin, on rollers, from Hon. E. A. Spencer; large map of
North Carolina, from Gen. J. K. Proudfit; Corbett's map
of the S'eat of War, 1861, from E. B. Quiner; and pocket
map of Clarion and Venango counties. Pa., from Hon. D. J.
Powers. We have now about 420 maps and atlases in our
collection.

Picture Gallery

A portrait, in oil, four feet two inches by three feet four
inches, of Judge A. G. Miller, of the United States Court for
the District of Wisconsin, painted by Clifford, of Milwaukee,
in black walnut frame, from Judge Miller; a portrait in oil
of an aged Indian woman, named Mosh-u-e-bee, of the Stock-
bridge tribe, who died about a year since at Dekorra, Wiscon-
sin, and is reputed to have had three sons who served in the
Revolutionary war, one of whom lost his life in the service,
and herself followed the patriot army, and must have been
not much, if any, less than one hundred and twenty-five years
of age, if these statements are true, though she is generally
supposed to have been some fifteen years older. Her portrait
was painted by S. D. Coates, of Merrimac, Wis., who pre-
sented it to the Society. It serves to preserve for our Indian
Gallery the singular appearance of an interesting relic of a for-
mer age. We have now sixty-two oil paintings in our collec-
tion, and the number should be augmented from our pioneers,
prominent civilians, and distinguished heroes of the war. We
appeal to our friends for additional pictures for our Gallery.

To our Art Gallery have also been added a fine lithograph
of Rev. R. J. Van Der Meulen, who gathered the Tank Li-

1 68 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

brary, and a fine photograph of the late Otto Tank, both finely
framed and glazed, from Mrs. C. L. A. Tank; two large pic-
tures of photographs of the Senate, Assembly and State ofil-
cers of Wisconsin, 1866, neatly mounted on cloth and framed;
also a photograph of Gov. L. P. Harvey, in a neat rosewood
frame, and glazed, from Messrs. Koberts & Whiting; a large
photograph of the Grant County, Wis., Soldiers' Monument,
from Addison Burr, of Lancaster; a beautiful series of five
photographs of views in the Yo- Semite Valley, California,
framed and glazed, from B. Frodsham; an ambrotype of Mrs.
Matilda Hood, the first female settler at Mineral Point, in
1827, from Maj. C. F. Legate.

Additions to the Cabinet

Early Coin. — A German coin, 1645, and a copper coin of
George III, from Hon. Thos. Bobinson; a Prussian copper
coin, 1800, from Samuel Barber.

Confederate Scrip. — A Confederate $500 bond, and a $10
Georgia bill, from Governor Fairchild; a 50 cent shin plaster
of the Tenn. & Miss. B. B. Co., from Bev. H. W. Spaulding.

Indian Curiosities. — A pipe of peace, of red pipe stone, with
nine smoking apartments, obtained from a Choctaw chief,
from W. M. Colby; a copper arrow head, from Concord, Wis.,
from J. Fomdrook; an Indian implement, found at Koshko-
nong, Wis., 1846, from Dr. N. J. Crane; two Indian arrows
taken from the bodies of soldiers massacred by the Sioux at
Fort Phil. Kearney, Dec. 22, 1866; from Lieut. J. K. Hyer;
a birch bark sap bucket, used by Indians of Burnett Co., Wis.,
from Hon. Mr. Stuntz.

Continental and Colonial Currency — A ^Ye shilling and a six
shilling Pennsylvaaia bill, 1YY3 and 1777, and a $35 Conti-
nental bill, Jan. 14, 1779, from Stephen Taylor.

War Relics and Curiosities, — A parole of Christian H.
Belger, Nov, 26, 1763, from Mr. Belger; a Vicksburg news-
paper, July 4, 1863, printed on wall paper, from Stephen

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report 169

Taylor, a volume of rebel documents found at Corinth, May
30, 1862, from Rev. C. A. Staples; and a newspaper printed
on wall paper, at Jacksonport, Arkansas, in 1863, from Dr. W.
M. Granger.

Autographs. — Two autograph letters of Wm. Eoscoe, of Liv-
erpool, 1792, 1808, from Mrs. C. A. Staples ; 12 visiting cards
of foreign ministers to the United States, from F. A. Holden;
autograph of D. G. Fenton, April 8, 1837, from Stephen Tay-
lor; commission of John Messersmith, J. P. of lowa County,
Oct. 14, 1829, signed by Gov. Lewis Cass, of Michigan Terri-
tory, from Judge Luman M. Strong.

Old Newspapers. — Reprint fac simile of London Times, Oc-
tober 3, 1798, giving an account of I^elson's Nile victory, from
S. A. Sherman; fac simile of Ulster County Gazette January
4, 1800, from Mr. Morse.

Natural History Specimens. — A piece of brick from Hercu-
laneum, found 80 feet below the surface; a brick from the
Coliseum, at Rome, and some scoria picked up, while hot, in
the crater of Mt. Vesuvius, June 24, 1867, from J. S. Blis^;
calamine and zinc blende, carbonate and surphuret of zinc,
dry bone and black-jack, from the mines of John Ross, Min-
eral Point, from G^n. Thos. S. Allen ; a specimen of the taran-
tula spider found in Mexico, preserved in spirits, from Geo.
T. Clark ; a hickory sapling through which an oaken board was
blown, at the Viroqua tornado of 1863 ; a fossil shell found in
Rutland, Wis., from Dr. N. J. Crane; a chip taken from the
center of a large pine tree in Knowlton, Marathon County,
Wis., with cuttings by an axe, with over one hundred years'
annual growth over the cut, from S. A. Sherman.

Miscellaneous. — The military coat and chapeau, worn by Gen.
Henry Dodge, while commanding the U. S. Dragoons, from
Hon. A. C. Dodge ; an ancient silver cross, about ten inches in
leongth, found at Green Bay, from Henry Hall, Toledo; a but-
ton from the coat of the celebrated John Paul Jones, from the
Hon. Thos. Robinson [ and a negro whip, from Washington,
Arkansas, from W. M. Colby.

170 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Literary Exchanges

We have received 30 copies each, from the State, of Stat(
piihlicatioais ; 25 copies of the proceedings of the Wisconsii
Editorial Convention, from the Convention, through its Secre
tary, Hon. James Ross; 15 copies of the Legislative Manual
1867, from General T. S. Allen; and 10 copies of the Repor
of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, from Hon. J. G
McMynn — all for exchanges. And, during the year, quite i
number of boxes and parcels have been made up and forwarder
to the Public Libraries of the country, with which we have es
tablished a system of exchanges.

Bindiing Fund

The Executive Committee beg again to call the attention 0:
the Society to the importance of providing a Binding Fund
the income of which to be used for binding purposes. Thii
matter was discussed in our last Report, and referred to th(
Committee on Endowment for action; but the whole matte:
seems to have been buried "in the tombs of the Capulets." Le
the subject be resurre<5ted, and new life imparted to it W<
have thousands of pamphlets and many valuable books tha
need binding, and the usefulness of our collection would b(
largely enhanced by such a needful provision. The Americai
Antiquarian Society, and kindred institutions have them; an(
we should delay no longer in the matter. The calls on th(
Greneral Fund are too numerous and pressing to permit us to d(
scarcely anything in the way of binding, except our newspape:
files, and those in the cheapest possible manner.

One of Wisconsin's earliest pioneers, and most useful o:
public men, Hon. John Catlin, now of 'New Jersey, has trans
mitted ua a hundred dollars as the nucleus of such a fund
which has been invested in a Government bond. The com
mittee suggest that the regular dues, and money donations, i:
any, be appropriated to that fund; that subscriptions be se
cured payable one-fifth annually till paid. Earnest persisten
action would ensure success.

1867] Fourteenth Annual Report 171

Conclusion

Wisconsin has a history, a long and eventful one of whichi
much has been already garnered, and much yet remains to be
done. The early French explorers and missionaries have left
u? some precious narratives and reports, while Charlevoix's
New France, Carver's, Long's and Pike's Travels and Atwa-
ter's Tour to Prairie du Chien, in 1829, give us some early
glimpses of Wisconsin history. 'Nor have our own citizens, in
more modem times, been idle in relating the story of her beau-
ties, her incidents and early hardships, and her wonderful pro-
gress and prosperity. Our honored Presidents, Gen. Wm. R.
Smith, and I. A. Lapham, LL. D., have r€;ndered our State a
good service; the former in his Observations in Wisconsin in
1837, and his History of Wisconsin, in 1853 ; and the latter in
his work on the History and Topography of Wisconsin, and
his able paper to the Smithsonian Contributions, on the Antiq-
uities of Wisconsin; John Gregory's Pesources of Wiscon-
sin; John W. Hunt's Gazetteer of the State; ]\[aj. D. S. Cur-
tiss' Western Portraiture; Rev. Stephen Peet's History of
the Presbyterian and Congregational Churches of Wisconsin;
Judge Gale's Records of the Gale Family, and his recent work
on the History of the Upper Mississippi Valley; Hon. Orrin
Guernsey's work on the History and Agriculture of Rock
county; Martin Mitchell's brochures on the Histories of
Fond du Lac and Winnebago counties; John C. Gillespy's
History of Green Lake county; A. C. Wheeler's Chronicles
of Milwaukee; G. M. West's Early History of Metomen;
Dan'l S. Dnrries' two works on the Genealogy of the Steele
and Holt Families, and his large work, in manuscript, on the
Topography and Statistics of Wisconsin; S. D. Carpenter's
Causes of the War; E. B. Quiner's and Rev. W. D. L. Love's
Histories of Wisconsin in the Rebellion; G. W. Drigg's His-
tory of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteers; Jas. J. McMyler's Elev-
enth Wisconsin volunteers; S. W. Pierce's Battle Fields and
Camp Fires of the 38th Wisconsin Volunteers; Dr. A. L. Cas-
tleman's Army of the Potomac Behind the Scenes; and

172 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

Kev. Mead Holmes' Soldier of the Cumberland, of the 21st
Regiment. To this long list should be added the six volumes
of Transactions of the Wisconsin Agricultural Society, pre-
pared by Albert C. Ingham and Dr. J. W. Hoyt ; the four vol-
umes of Reports and Collections of our Historical Society ; and
the 25 volumes of Reports of our Supreme Court, of which one
volume contains those of the Territory by Thos. P. Burnett,
four of our old Supreme Court, by D. H. Chandler, eleven vol-
umes of the re-organized Supreme Court, by Hon. A. D. Smith,
four by P. L. Spooner, and five by O. M. Conover.

Such are some of our Wisconsin gleaners and gleanings — ■
quite an array for so young a State. There is work yet foi
our Society to do — ^work which, if we neglect, will be likely
to go undone, and much of it to perish with the present gen-
eiation. We shall soon commence re-issuing our CollectionSj
for which w© need contributions from our old pioneers; and
from the surviving officers and soldiers of the war, narratives
of their experiences and observations. Shall we have them ?

Let the past year's unexampled prosperity of our Society
inspire us with new hopes and encouragements, and nerve us
to the achievement of yet more signal success.

1867) Henry Dodge 173

Eulogy on Henry Dodge

After the reading of the Annual Report of the Executive
Committee, Mr. S. U. Pinney rose and annouBcefl. the death
of Gen. Henry Dodge:

Mr. President: — Since the last annual meeting of this So-
ciety, death has removed from our midst one of our most es-
teemed and tried friends, who was an honorary member of this
Society, and one of the first and most honored citizens of our
State; and I embrace this, the first suitable opportunity, of
making a formal announcement of the event. On the 19th of
June, 1867, at the residence of his son, Hon. Augustus C.
Dod^e, at Burlington, Iowa, General Henry Dodge, the first
Territorial Governor of Wisconsin, and for a long period a
Senator from this State in Congress, departed this life full of
years and honors. The sad intelligence of the death of one
who has been so prominent an suctor in the public affairs of the
Territory and State, and whose life and public services are so
intimately connected with its history and the settlement of the
Northwest, will be received with profound regret. It will call
to the recollection of the early settlers and pioneers of the
West, many interesting incidents and reminiscences, the mem-
ory of which is passing away with the brave, enterprising and
hardy band who first opened this rich and prosperous country
to civilization, and who participated in the perils, hard'^hips
and trials which attended its early settlement. It will awaken
feelings of reverence and gratitude in those of the present gen-
eratioL , who have succeeded to the enjoyment of the fruits of
their labors and privations.

It remains to us at this time, to perform the melancholy yet
pleasant duty of paying an appropriate tribute to his long and

174 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v,

useful career, and to bear in gratelul remembrance the distin-
guished ability, integrity and fidelity, which he displayed in
the high and important official trusts to which he was so fre'
quently called by our people.

General Dodge was bom in the year 1782, at Vincennes, in
that portion of the i^orth- Western territory which nov/ consti-
tutes the State of Indiana. He removed to Missouri, where
he passed a considerable of the earlier portion of his life. In
1808, he held the office of SherilT of Cape Girardeau County.
In 1812, he was chosen Captain of a mounted rifle company,
and in September of that year he was appointed Major of the
Louisiana Territorial militia. He continued in service during
the war until October, 1814, rising to the rank of Lieutenant
Colonel; and, in 1814, he commanded an expedition sent up
largely in the trials and difiiculties incident to the early settle-
ment of that State. In 1827, he removed to Wisconsin, then a
part of Michigan Territory, and settled near Dodgeville, in the
mining district, and engaged in the business of mining. At
this period he took a prominent part in the Winnebago Indian
war. He was appointed Major of the United States Rangers
in June, 1832, and Colonel of the First Dragoons on the 4th
of March, 1833, which position he resigned about three years
afterwards. During the Black Hawk war he held the po-
sition of Colonelj and distinguished himself by the prompt,
energetic and decisive manner in which he conducted the part
assigned to him. He, acquired a high reputation as a military
Gincer, in conducting campaigns against the Indians, and in
tJiis service he had few, if any, superiors. He became at
this time intimately acquainted with the country, and one of
itB most prominent and useful citizens. Upon the organiza-
tion of tihe Territory of Wisconsin in 1836, he was appointed
by President Jackson its first Governor, and continued to
hold that office until the 30th of September, 1841, v/hen he
was elected Delegate to Congress from Wisconsin Territory,
and continued in that office until the 8th of April, 1845, hav-
ing been re-elected in September, 1843. On the 8th of April,

1867] Henry Dodge 175

1845, he was again appointed Governor of the Territory, and
continued to be its Governor until the 29th of May, 1848,
when, upon the admission of Wisconsin into the Union, he
was succeeded by Hon. ^N'elson Dewey, who had been elected
under our State Constitution. Upon the organization of the
State government in June, 1848, he was elected as one of its
tirst Senators to represent Wisconsin in Congress, and was, on
the 20th day of January, 1851, re-elected to the United States
Senate for the term of six years. At the expiration of this
term, in 1857, he retired from public life, and afterwards, and
until the time of his death, he resided part of the time at Minr
eral Point, in this State, and part of the time at Burlingtx>n,
Iowa, where his son Hon. Augustus C. Dod^, resides.

It rarely falls to the lot of any man to enjoy popular favor
so long, or in a greater degree, or to serve in official station
with greater credit to himself or more advantage to his con-
stituency, than did General Dodge. His public services com-
menced with the early settlement of the West, and in its bor-
der savage wars, and continued without interruption until his
retirement from public life, embracing a period of nearly fifty
yesLTQ. His life and personal history are, to a great extent, the
history of the settlement and development of our State, of
which he may well be considered, to a great extent, the founder
find father. It never had a more faithful and devoted public
servant, and none of its citizens ever took a more lively inter-
est than he in its advancement and prosperity.

All his official and personal relations were characterized by
a personal integrity of the highest order, which was not merely
a rule to which he submitted, but a principle of his life. He
was a man of remarkable personal dignity and firmness of
character, and fidelity of purpose, and he possessed, a singular
capacity to judge of the usefulness and integrity of others. To
these elements of character his eminent success in life was in
a great degree attributable. Without the adventitious aids of
wealth or influential personal friends, he rose steadily, but
surely, to the position of a representative man of the West,
and an influential and honored statesman in the councils of the

176 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

nation. H© lived to see the section of the country over which
he was appointed Governor in 1836, rise to the ma^itnde of
an empire, and embracing within its limits the great and grow-
ing States of Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota, and so much of
Dacotah Territory as lies East of the Missouri river; States
which furnished over 197,000 soldiers to suppress the recent
Rebellion, and which possesQ almost exhaustless resources yet
to be developed, to add to their dignity, wealth and power.
With what pride and satisfaction must he have contemplated
the result of the labors of himself and his associate pioneers,
as he surveyed the political and social organizations, and the
new civilization which their hands had founded and reared.
Heroes and warriors, prompted by unholy ambition, may hew
their way to place and power and achieve distinguished posi-
tions in the history of the world by conquering provinces, and
trampling down and destroying eixisting systems and organiza-
tions, but how much more honorable and imperishable, the re-
nown of those who have founded States and empires, and laid
broad and deep the lasting foundations of new governments,
of political and social systems, which are destined we trust, to
become the grandest and most beneficent in their operation and
influence, of any the world ever saw.

He lived to see his country, which he loved and served so
long and so well, withstand and triumph over the shock of
Civil War and Rebellion, and emerge successfully from what
we trust was destined to be its last great trial. In the calm
retirement of a ripe/ and honorable old age, in the possession
of all his mental faculties, unimpaired by disease, with the
consciousness that he had lived an honorable and useful life,
and cheered and sustained by the consolations of a Christian
faith, and a lively hope of a blessed immortality beyond the
grave, and while surrounded by his friends and family, he
quietly passed to his honored rest.

"And we are glad he nas lived thus long,
And glad that he has gone to his reward ;
Nor can we deem that Nature die- him wrong
Softly to disengage the vital cord,
For when his hand grew palsiedi and his eye
Dark with the mists of age, it was his time to die."

1867] Henry Dodge 177

Mr. President, I move that a committee of three be ap-
pointed to prepare resolutions expressive of the sense of this So-
ciety on the sad event, and to procure a paper to be prepared
on the life, character and public services of the deceased, to
be preserved with the archives of this Society.

Messrs. Pinney, Mills and Dean were appointed such com-
mittee, who reported the following resolutions:

''Resolved, That, in the death of Gen. Henry Dodge, this
Society, and the entire Northwest, have lost one of their earli-
est^ most faithful and valued friends, and this State a dis-
tinguished citizen, whose name, fame and public services form
the great central figure in its early settlement, and are closely
identified with the history of its formation, and its progress
and prosperity.

''Resolved, That his eminent and faithful public services in
military and civil life, his courage and sound practical judg-
ment, his high sense of honor and his purity of character, and
fidelity to official trust during a long and useful life, earned
for him the confidence and respect of the people, and form a
noble and impressive example for future imitation, and have
secured for him to all time the grateful remembrance of the
people of this State.

"Resolved, That we sincerely lament his death, and that to
his many friends, and to all who are bereaved by the sad event,
we tender our cordial sympathy.

"Resolved, That the Corresponding Secretary of this So-
ciety, be directed to forward a copy of these proceedings to the
family of the lamented deceased."

After remarks on General Dodge by W. Welch, Esq., Hon.
George B. Smith, Governor Fairchild, General Thomas S. Al-
len and Lyman C. Draper, the resolutions were adopted.

178 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

The Winnebago War

By Col. Thomas L. McKenney

At four o'clock on the afternoon, of September 1st, 182Y, we
arrived at the Portage of Wisconsin, and encamped on a high
bluff which overlooks the country for a great distance to the
south and west. We had not finished the business of encamp-
icg, before seven Winnebago warriors came along, on their
way from Green Isle to the Four Lakes, fully armed and
equipped. It was a direction in which we did not desire any
of that sort of force to go, the enemy being at the Four Lakes
in great numbers. Major Whistler* gave orders to disarm
and detain them. They were told they should be well fed,
and treated well, whilst they behaved themselves. They ap-
peared to feel deeply when their arms were taken from them;
nor did they appear to like the strength and appearance of the
military. An express arrived from General Atkinson, an-
nouncing his approach, and directing Major Whistler to halt
and fortify himself at the Portage, and wait his arrival, as the
capture of the enemy could be made, with his additional force,
with more ease and less sacrifice of life.

The object of the joint expedition of General Atkinson from
Jefferson Barracks, below St. Louis, and of Major Whistler
from Ft. Howard, on Green Bay, was, as has been intimated, to
capture those who had committed the murders at Prairie Du
Chien, and put a stop to any further aggressions of the sort.
The Winnebagoes, it will be remembered, had been advised,

♦William Whistler, entered the army from the Northwestern Territory as
a Second Lieutenant, In June, 1801 ; made First Lieutenant in 1807 ; dis-
tinguished himself in the battle of Maguago, 9th Aug., 1812 ; promoted to Cap-
tain in Dec, 1812; Major, in 1826; Lieutenant Colonel in 1834, and Colonel
in 1845. He died, at an advanced age, near Cincinnati, Dec. 21, 1863 ; after
*ixty-two years continuous and faithful services rendered his country.

L. C. D

1867] Winnebago War 179

prior to the opening of tlie council at La Butte Des Morts, that
the security of their people lay in the surrender of the mui'der-
ers. The first intimation that this primary object would be
accomplished, was given the day after our arrival at the Por-
tage, in a very mysterious way. I was sitting at the door of
my tent, when an Indian, of common appearance, with noth-
ing over him but a blanket, came up to the bluff, and walking
to the tent, seated himself upon his haunches beside it. Thia
was almost the middle of the day. I inquired, through the
interpreter, what was the object of his visit. After musing
awhile, he said: ^'Do not strike; when the sun is there to-
morrow,"— looking up and pointing to about three o'clock in
the afternoon — "they will come in." Who will come in? I
asked. "Eed Bird and We-kau," he answered. The mo-
ment he gave the answer, he rose, wrapped his blanket about
him, and with hurried step returned by the way he had come.
At about three o'clock of the same day, another Indian came
and took his position in nearly the same place, and in the same
way, when to like questions, he gave like answers ; and at sun-
down a third came, confirming what the other two had said,
with the addition that he had, to secure that object, given to
the families of the murderers nearly all of his property. There
appeared to me to be two objects in view by this Indian mode
of managing the art diplomatique. One was to prevent an at-
tack, which our near neighborhood to the point where the In-
dian force was concentrated, led them to apprehend; the other
to say all cause for attack was, as they viewed it, removed by
the treble assurance given, that the murderers will, at the time
specified, be brought in. There could be nothing more to the
purpose.

There was something heroic in this voluntary - surrender.
The giving away of property to the families of the guilty par-
ties, had nothing to do with their determination to devote
themselves for the good of their people, but only to reconcile
those who were about to be bereaved to the dreadful expedi-
ent. The heroism of the purpose is seen in the fact, that the
murders committed at Prairie du Chien were not wanton, but
13

i8o Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

in retaliation for wrongs oonunitted upon this people by the
whites. The parties murdered at the Prairie, were doubtless
innocent of the wrongs and outrages of which the Indians com-
plained, but the law of Indian retaliation does not require
that he alone who commits a wrong, shall suffer for it. One
scalp is held to be due for another, no matter from whose head
it is taken, provided it be torn from the crown of the family,
or people who may have made a resort to this law necessary.
If these Indians had multiplied their victims to ten times the
number slain by them at the Prairie, it is highly probable the
balance of suffering and of blood would have been greatly on
the side of the Indians; and yet we find, under such cir-
cumstances, a readiness on the part of the murderers, rather
than have '^a road cut through their country with guns,''
which would subject the innocent to both affliction and death,
to make a voluntary surrender of themselves!

At about noon of the day following, there were seen de-
scending a mound on the Portage, a body of Indians — some
were mounted, and some were on foot. By the aid of a glass
we could discern the direction to be towards our position, and
that three flags were borne by them — two, one in front and
one in the rear, were American, and one in the center was
white. They bore no arms. We were at no loss to under-
stand that the promise made by the three Indians, the day be-
fore, was about to be fulfilled. In the course of half an hour
they had approached within a short distance of the crossing
of the Pox River, when on a sudden we heard a singing.
Those who were familiar with the air, said — "it is a death
song!" When still nearer, some present, who knew him, said
— "it is the Eed Bird singing his death-song!" The mo-
ment a halt was made on the margin of the river, preparatory
to crossing over, two scal'p yells were heard.

The Monomonees and other Indians who had accompanied
us, were lying carelessly about upon the ground, regardless of
what was going on, but when the "scalp-yells" were uttered,
they sprang as one man to their feet, seized their rifles, and
were ready for battle. Thev were at no loss to know that the

1867] Winnebago War i8i

yells were "scalp-yells''; but they had not heard with suffi-
cient accuracy to decide whether they indicated scalps to be
talcen or given; but, doubtless, inferred the first.

Barges were sent across to receive, and an escort of military
to accompany, them within our lines. The white flag which
had been seen in the distance was borne by the Red Bird.
During the cross-ing a rattle-snake passed me, and was struck by
Capt. D., with his sword, and partly disabled, when I ran mine
through his neck, and holding up the slain reptile, a Monomo-
nee Indian cut off his head with his knife. The head was
burned to keep the fangs from doing injury by being trod up-
on, and his body cut up into small pieces, and distributed to
the Indians for their medicine bags — thus furnishing a new
antidote against evil agencies, should any happen, during the
remainder of their march. This was looked upon as another
good omen by the Indians.

And now the advance of the Indians had reached half up
the ascent of the bluff, on which was our encampment. In the
lead was Car-i-mi-nie,''^ a distinguished chief. Arriving on
the level, upon which was our encampment, and order being
called, Car-i-mi-nie spoke, saying: "They are here — like
braves tliey have come in — treat them as braves — do not put
them in irons." This address was made to me. I told him I
was not the big captain. His talk must be made to Major
Whistler, who would, I had no doubt, do what was right. Mr^
Marsh, the sub-agent, being there, an advance was made to
him, and a hope expressed that the prisoners might be turned
over to him. There was an evident aversion to their being
given up to the military. I told him Mr. Marsh should be
with the prisoners, which composed them. For the remainder
of the incidents, I must resort to a letter which I addressed to
the Hon. James Barbour, Secretary of War, giving an ac-

*Naw-Kaw, or Car-o-wiau-nee, or The Walking Turtle, went on a mission
with Tecdmsbh in 1809 to the New York Indians, and served with that chief
during the campaign of 1818, and was present at his death at the Thames.
He signed the treaties of 1816, 1825, 1827, 1829 and 1832. Mrs. Kinzib, in
her charmini^ work, ^Yau-hun,. or the Early day in North- West— a. work too
little known, and which well deserves to be republished, and extensively cir-
culated— thus describes this old chief as she saw bim at the period of 1830:
"There was Naw-Kaw, or Kar-kay-mad-nee, The Walking Rain, since the
principal chief of the nation, a stalwart Indian, with a broad, pleasant coun-

1 82 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

count of this most imposing, and by me never-to-be-forgotten
ceremony :

''The military had been previously drawn out in line. The
Monomonee and Wabanackie* Indians were in groups upon
their haunches, on our left flank. On the right, was the band
of music, a little in advance of the line. In front of the center,
at about ten paces distant, were the murderers. On their
right and left, were those who had accompanied them, forming
a semi-circle, the magnificent Red Bird, and the miserable
looking We-kau, a little in advance of the center. All eyes
were fixed upon Red Bird; and well they might be — for of
all the Indians I ever saw, he is, without exception, the most
perfect in form, in face and gesture. In height, he is about six
feet ; straight, but without restraint. His proportions are those
of the most exact symmetry, and these embrace the entire
man, from his head to his feet. His very fingers are models
of beauty. I never beheld a face that was so full of all the
ennobling, and, at the same time, the most winning expression.
It were impossible to combine with such a face the thought that
he who wore it, could be a murderer ! It appears to be a com-
pound of grace and dignity; of firmness and decision, all tem-
pered with mildness and mercy. During my attempted anal-
ysis of this face, I could not but ask myself, can this man be
a murderer? Is he the same who shot^, scalped and cut the
throat of Gagnier? His head, too — sure no head was ever
so well formed. There was no ornamenting of the hair, after
the Indian fashion ; no clubbing it up in blocks and rollers of
lead, or bands of silver; no loose or straggling parts — ^but it
was cut after the best fashion of the most civilized.

"His face was painted, one side red, the other intermixed
with green and white. Around his neck he wore a collar of
blue wampum, beautifully mixed with white, which was sewn
on to a piece of cloth, the width of the wampum being about
two inches — ^whilst the claws of the panther, or wild-cat, dis-
tant from each other about a quarter of an inch, with their
points inward, formed the rim of the collar. Around his neck

♦Wau-ba-na-kees, or the Oneida Indians, living above Green Bay. L. C. D.

1867] Winnebago War 183

were hanging strands of wampum of various lengths, the cir-
cles enlarging as they descended. He was clothed in a Yank-
ton dress — ^new and beautiful. The material is of dressed elk,
or deer-skin, almost a pure white. It consists of a jacket, the
sleeves being cut to fit his finely formed arm, and so as to
leave outside of the seam that ran from the shoulder, back of
the arm, and along over the elbow, about six inches of the
material, one half of which is cut into fringe; the same kind
of fringe ornamenting the collar of the jacket, its sides, bosom,
and termination, which was not circular, but cut in points,^ and
which also ran down the seams of the leggins, these being
made of the same material. Blue beads were employed to
vary and enrich the fringe of the leggins. On his feet he wore
moccasins.

^'A piece of scarlet cloth of about a quarter of a yard deep,
and double that width, a slit being cut in its middle, so as to
admit the passing through of his head, rested, one half on his
breast, (and beneath the necklace of wampum and claws, ) and
the other on his back. On one shoulder, and near his breast,
was a beautifully ornamented feather, nearly white ; and about
opposite, on the other shoulder, was another feather, nearly
black, near which were two pieces of thinly shaven wood in
the form of compasses, a little open, each about six inches
long, richly wrapped around with porcupine's quills, dyed yel-
low, red, and blue. On the tip of one shoulder was a tuft of
horse-hair, dyed red, and a little curled, mixed up with orna-
ments. Across the breast, in a diagonal position, and bound
tight to it, was his war-pipe, at least three feet long, brightly
ornamented with dyed horse-hair, the feathers and bills of
birds. In one of his hands he held the white flag, and in the
other the calumet, or pipe of peace.

^' There he stood. Not a muscle moved, nor was the ex-
pression of his face changed a particle. He appeared to be
conscious that, according to Indian law, and measuring the
deed he had committed by the injustice and wrongs, and cru-
elties of the white man, he had done no wrong. The light
which had shone in upon his bosom from the law which de-

184 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

manded an eye for an eye, and a tootk for a tooth, so harmon-
ized with his conscience, as to secure its repose. As to death,
he had been taught to despise it, confiding in that heaven, that
spirit-land, where tlie game is always plenty — the forests al-
ways green — the waters always transparent, tranquil, and pure
— and where no evil thing is permitted to enter. He was there,
prepared to receive the blow that should consign his body to
the ground, and send his spirit to that blissful region, to min-
gle with his fathers who had gone before him.

^^He and We-kau were told to sit down. His motions a?
he seated himself, were no less graceful and captivating, than
when he stood or walked. At this moment the band struck
up PleyeFs hymn. Everything was still. It was, indeed, a
moment of intense interest to all. The Red Bird turned his
eyes toward the band; the tones operated upon his feelings in
such a way as to produce in his countenance a corresponding
pensiveness. The music having ceased, he took up his pouch,
(which I forgot to say was a handsomely ornamented otter
skin, that hung on his left side,) and taking from it some kin-
nahinic and tobacco, cut the latter in the palm of his hand,
after the Indian fashion, then rubbing the two together, filled
the bowl of his calumet, struck fire into a bit of spunk with
his flint and steel, and lighted it, and smoked. All the mo-
tions employed in this ceremony were no less harmonious and
appropriate, than had characterized his other movements. He
sat after the Turkish fashion, with his legs crossed.

^'If you think there was anything of affectation in all this,
you are mistaken. There was just the manner, and appear-
ance, and look, you would expect to see in a nobly built man
of the highest order of intelligence, and who had been taught
all the graces of motion, and then escorted by his armies to a
throne, where the diadem was to be placed upon his head.

^^ There is but one opinion of the man, and that I have at-
tempted to convey to you. I could not refrain from specu-
lating on his dress. His white jacket, having upon it but a
single piece of red, appeared to indicate the purity of his past
life, which had been stained by only a single crime; for all

1887] Winnebago War 185

agree, that the Red-Bird had never before soiled his fingers
with the blood of the white man, or committed a bad action.
Ilis war-pipe, bound close to his heart, seemed to indicate his
love of war, in common with his race, which was no longer to
be gratified. The red cloth, however, may have been indica-
tive of his name.*

"All sat, except the speakers. The substance of what
they said was: We were required to bring in the murderers.
They had no power over any, except two — ^the third had gone
away; and these had voluntarily agreed to come in, and give
themselves up. As their friends, they had come with them.
They hoped their white brothers would agree to accept the
horses of which there were, perhaps, twenty; the meaning of
which was, to take them in commutation for the lives of their
two friends. They asked kind treatment for their friends, and
earnestly besought that they might not be put in irons — and
concluded by asking for a little tobacco, and something to eat.

"They were answered, and told, in substance, that they
had done well thus to come in. By having done so, they
had turned away our guns, and saved their people. They
v/ere admonished against placing themselves in a like situa*
tion in the future, and advised, when they were aggriev<ed,
not to resort to violence, but to go to their agent, who would
inform their Great Father of their complaints, and he would
redress their grievances; that their friends should be treated
kindly, and tried by the same laws by which their Great
leather's white children were tried; that for the present, Red
Bird and We-kau should not be put in irons; that they
should all have something to eat, and tobacco to smoke. We
advised them to warn their people against killing ours; and
endeavored, also, to impress them with a proper notion of their
own weakness, and the extent of our power, &c.

"Having heard this, the Red Bird stood up — the com-
manding ofiicer. Major Whistler, a few paces in front of the

♦Col. CiiiLDS, in his Recollections of Wisconsin, vol. lY, Wis. Hist. Colls.,
p. 173, describes Red-Bird as he saw him on the fame occasion : "He was
dressed in fine style, having on a salt made of neatly dried buffalo skins, perfectly
white, and as soft as a kid glove ; and on e»ch sh.oulder, to supply the place of
an epaulette, was fastened a perserved red-hird — hence the name of this
noted chief, Red-Bird.

I 86 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

center of the line, facing him. After a moment's pause, and a
quick survey of the troops, and with a composed observation
of his people, he spoke, looking at Major Whistler, saying,
'/ am ready/ Then advancing a step or two, he paused, say-
ing, ^I do not wish to be .put in irons. Let me be free. I
have given away my life — it is gone — (stooping and taking
some dust between his finger and thumb, and blowing it away)
— like that — eyeing the dust as it fell and vanished from his
sight, then adding: ^I would not take it back. It is gone/
Having thus spoken, he threw his hands behind him, to indi-
cate that he was leaving all things behind him, and marched
briskly up to Major Whistler, breast to breast. A platoon was
wheeled backwards from the center of the line, when Major
Whistler stepping aside, the Ked Bird and We-kau marched
through the line, in charge of a file of men, to a tent that had
been provided for them in the rear, when a guard was set over
them. The comrades of the two captives then left the ground
by the way they had come, taking with them our advice, and
a supply of meat and flour, and tobacco.

^'We-kau, the miserable-looking being, the accomplice of
the Red Bird, was in all things the opposite of that unfortu-
nate brave. I^ever, before, were there two human beings so ex-
actly, in all things, so unlike one another. The one seemed a
prince, and as if born to command, and worthy to be obeyed;
the other, as if he had been born to be hanged. Meagre — cold
— dirty in his person and dress — crooked in form — ^like the
starved wolf, gaunt, hungry, and blood-thirsty — his entire ap-
pearance indicating the presence of a spirit wary, cruel and
treacherous. The heart, at sight of this, was almost steeled
against sympathy, and barred against the admission of pity.
This is the man who could scalp a child, not eleven months
old, and in taking off its fine locks as a trophy, and to exhibit
as a scalp, cut the back of its neck to the bone, and leave it to
languish and die on the floor, near the body of its murdered
father! But his hands, and crooked and miserable-looking
fingers, had been accustomed to such bloody work.

"The Eed Bird did not appear to be over thirty years old,

1867] Winnebago War 187

and yet he is said to be past forty. We-kau looks to be
forty-five, and is no doubt as old as that. I shall see on
my arrival at Prairie Du Chien, the scene of these butcheries;
and, as I may write you upon all matters connected with
my tour, I will introduce you to that. The child, I for-
got to say, by the latest accounts, yet lives, and promises
to survive. The widow of Gagnier is also there, and I shall
get the whole story from her mouth, and shall then, doubt-
less, get it truly. You shall have it all, and a thousand
things beside, that, when I left home^ I never expected to
realize ; but having once entered upon the scenes I have passed,
no matter with how much personal risk they were to be en-
countered, there was no going back. I see no danger, I con-
fess, especially now — but, any how, my way is onward, and I
shall go."

I never, however, made good my promise to narrate the in-
cidents of my travels, further than as these were embraced in
my official returns. The above account of the surrender of
Red Bird will not lose any of its freshness here, I hope, from
its having been published in pretty much the same dress in
tlje newspapers, a short time after its reception by the Secre-
tary of War, and again in the work on the Aborigines of N^orth
America, by myself and James Hall. As it formed a part
of the varied occurrences of my tour in 1827, which I am now
for the first time embodying, I cannot, in justice to the con-
nection I wish to preserve of the whole, omit it.

On the morning of the 3d, having little else to do, I busied
myself to find out, if I could, how the Indians could, without
danger, capture the rattle-snake. This whole country is full
of them; and so constant is the noise of their rattles, when
any thing happens to molest them, that the ear is kept half
the time deceived by what seems to be the ticking of watches,
in a watch-maker's window. I was honored by a visit from
one in my tent that morning, and was prompted by that call,
perhaps, to find out in what way my civilities might best pro-
tect me from their too close attention. I was told the smell of
tobacco made the snake sick; and this explained why, in two

1 88 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi

. V.

instances in which I had witnessed the taking of this reptile
bj Indians, tobacco was employed. They also employ a root,
but of what herb or shrub I could not iind out, which they
pound and put on a stick; then they excite the snake to bite
it^ when the poison of the root being taken into the snake's
mouth, kills it. I was told they take from the neck of the
turkey-buzzard a piece of the flesh, and dry and pound it, and
rub their bodies with this powder. Thus guarded, the snake
vdll not bite, or come near them. How true all or any part
of all this is, I cannot vouch, never having made trial of
either.

At nine in the morning, after the surrender, I took leave of
the military, and in company with Count De Lillier, Judge
Lecuyer, and Rev. Mr. Jones, a Protestant Episcopal clergy-
man, the first settled at Green Bay, started for a descent of the
Wisconsin River. Having crossed the Fox River to the oppo-
site landing, on the Portage, an ox-cart was provided for our
transportation across to the Wisconsin — the width of the Por-
tage being about twenty-five hundred paces. The entire way
was miry, and full of rattle-snakes. The veteran interpreter,
Pauquet,* was employed to drive us over. The wheels of the
cart, though broad, sank deep into the mud, and the sturdy
beasts bent to their duty; but without the constant employ-
ment of Pauquet's powerful arms, and the exertion of his
great strength in applying to tlieir sides repeated strokes from
what seemed like a hoop or hop-pole, exciting them, mean-
time, with his stentorian voice, and giving vent to anathemas,
in Winnebago, with almost every breath, we must have been
forced into some other conveyance, or taken to our feet in
mud a foot deep, to have, in any reasonable time, reached the

*PiKRHE rACQUETTE was the SOD of a French father and a Winnehago mother.
He v,'as married, about 1818, to a woman whose father was a Canadian half-
breed, and v/hose mother was a half-breed Sauk, He was the Interpreter at
the treaties with the Winnehagoes at Green Bay in 1828, at Prairie du Chien
in 1825, and at Rock Island in 1832. He was active in raising a party of
Winnehagoes, in 1832, to unite with the Americans against the hostile Sauks,
and he fought in the ranks at the battle of the Wisconsin Heights. After this
war, we find him engaged as a trader on the west side of the Wisconsin, at
Portage.

He was killed by an Indian, in September, 1836 who shot him with a car-
bine in Portage — an assassination which grew out of his connection with the
Sauk war. "Pacquette," says Schoolcraft, "was a man of Winnebago lineage,
•nd was reputed to be one of the best friends and counsellors of the nation."

1867] Winnebago War 189

Ouisconsin. But by the aid of the hop-pole and the Winne-
bago anathemas, both well understood, doubtless, by the oxen,
we were carted over in safety. When, about midway, and
during one of the numerous pauses which the oxen were wont
to make, the man bearing the flag-staff of my canoe, struck,
with the lower end of it, a rattle-snal^e that lay near where
Pauquet was standing — -for he walked the entire distance.
The snake, enraged at the blow, gave signs of resistance, and
apprehending it might dart its fangs into Pauquet's legs, I
stooped from the cart, and ran it through with my sword, when
one of the men cut off its head with an axe. Whether Pau-
quet trusted to his leather leggins and moccasins, or their
being well imbued with tobacco smoke, or the powdered root,
or the buzzai'd's neck, I did not learn ; but he was as com-
posed in regard to these reptiles, as if he had been mailed in
brass or iron.

Having crossed the Portage, our canoes, srupplies and bag-
gage being all over, we embarked at eleven o'clock, A. M., on
the Ouisconsin. The current which we had been opposing, the
entire length of the Pox Kiver, was now in our favor; the
waters of the Ouisconsin running from its source to the Mis-
sissippi, as do those of the Pox Kiver, on the other side of the
Portage, into Green Bay. They first find their way through
the Lakes into the Ocean by the St. Lawrence, and the last by
the way of the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico. Whether
after having started for those diverse directions, from sources
sci near one another, they ever meet and mingle more in the
deep blue sea, is a problem which I do not pretend to solve.
I could not help thinking how closely they resembled early
friends, who in boy-hood were hand in hand with each other,
and rarely, for a series of years, out of one another's sight,
when at last "some current's thwarting course" separated
tliem, to meet no more forever.

Our voyagers felt now, upon this onward current, as the
mariner feels, when both the wind and tide, after having been
long contrary, turn in his favor, and when he is assured there
will be no change till he reaches the port of his destination.

I go Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v.

I had engaged a fine looking Indian to join the Count as a
voyager, hoping thereby to add to the speed of his canoe, and
that we might, in our descent to the Mississippi, keep close
company. I had heard much of the scenery of the Guisconsin,
and felt that my admiration of it would be stimulated, if the
Count, with his lustrous eyes, could be along to see the beauty
and grandeur of the scenes, and in such close neighborhood to
me, as to interchange sentiments and feelings in their contem-
plation. An accident deprived the Count of the services of
the Indian.

The Kev. Mr. Jones, being unpracticed in the handling of
fire-arms, was sitting on a log with the Count's double-barrelled
gun across his lap — the muzzle pointed on a line with another
log, at some twenty paces distant, upon which sat the Indian,
— when, as luck would have it, one of the barrels was dis-
charged, the shot rattling against the log, and scattering the
sand about, besides a few penetrating the Indian's leggins. Up
sprang the astonished brave and voyager, and eyeing Mr. Jones
for a second or two, said, "that man don't know what he is
about" — then looking over his shoulder at Jones, walked off.

We had not been long under way, before I saw the Count's
force was inadequate. I made a pause till he came up, and
transferred to his canoe one of my men ; the force proving yet
too feeble, I assisted him with another, when onward we went
to the music of the voyagers' songs, happy in the reflection
that our expedition had, so far, terminated otherwise than in
blood. We were charmed, too, at having escaped the monotony,
as well as the tedium of the ascent of the Fox Eiver. There
are, it is true, upon its shores, many beautiful upland views,
where the trees grow apart, and without undergrowth, convey-
ing to the eye the almost certain presence of civilization. But
in the main, its shores are level, and its waters are dark, and
filled with the folle avoine, or wild rice, and various aquatic
plants besides; some of them, the lily especially, very beauti-
ful. ISTature would seem, even here, to have made provision
for the gratification of man; and, if the way was monotonous,
she kindly scattered flowers to diversify the scene, and regale

1867] Winnebago War 191

the voyager. Here, on the Ouisconsin, are sandy shores, and
sand-bars, and islands, and rolling and verdure-capped shores,
and hills and moiintains — ^with valleys of the richest green, in
which theie would seem never to have been a war, even of the
elements; and these, again, were relieved by miniature repre-
sentations of the pictured rocks of Lake Superior.

The water of the Ouisconsin is of the color of brandy, with
less sediment than is found in that of the Fox Kiver. E"eitber,
however, should be drunk, in my opinion, without having
first undergone the process of boiling. Every mile of our
descent increased the variety, the grandeur, and the beauty
of the shores. Hills shooting up into more towering heights,
without a tree, but clothed in the brightest green; others,
again, with summits resembling dilapidated fortifications, and
so like them, as to cheat the observer into the belief that they
were, sure enough, once, what they now seem to have been.
In one of these, we noticed a tal], leafless, and dead pine, so
exactly resembling a flag-staff, not in exterior only, but in its
position, as to convince at least one of the party that a fortifi-
cation had once crowned that hill, and in its destruction, the
flag-staff had escaped the conflagration, by being only charred.
Many of these elevations rise from the river, in the terrace
form; the lower, all soft, and green, and beautiful; the upper.
Clowned with dark evergreens, arranged so as to wear the ap-
pearance of having been planted upon a regular plan, the whole
conception and execution of some mind richly stored with all
the elements of a practical science. And was it not

"Natdbb, enchanting Nature, in whose form
And lineaments divine, I trace a hand
That ens not?"

We had not been many hours on the Ouisconsin 'before, on
looking to my right, I saw some hundred or more Indians
appear suddenly on the summit of a hill of some sixty feet
elevation, overlooking the river, and form in line, with their
rifles. What their object was I could not divine, but every
movement seemed to indicate ^ a purpose to greet us with a
shower of leaden deaths. There was not a second to spare;

192 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

so I ordered my steersman to turn in instantly. The head of
the canoe was in a moment changed from its line down the
river, and headed towards the shore. This movement brought
all their rifles across the arms of the Indians, who, being sud-
denly struck by this prompt movement, were at a loss to com-
prehend its meaning, and seemed resolved to await its issue.
Our guns were concealed. On reaching the beach, I ordered
the men to be ready for any emergency; and so, buckling on
my sword, and putting a pair of pistols in my pockets, I
directed Ben, my steward, to fill his pockets with tobacco and
Indian jewelry, and follow me and the interpreter up the steep
ascent.

Ben's color changed from its fine and glossy ebony to a sort
of lived paleness, and a trembling seized him. He had often
predicted, as well the year before, as now, that we should
never see home again; and this he verily believed was to be
the hour when his prophesy was to be fulfilled. This change
in his complexion was nothing new to me, having had occasion
t ) observe it frequently, and, in my Tour to the Lakes, to re-
cord it.

On. arriving at the summit of the hill, I stood a moment.
The Indians had all changed their positions, and were now fac-
ing me. JSTot a word was spoken, nor did a man of them stir.
After a short pause, I inquired, through the interpreter, if
their chief was present. He was. "Tell him to come and
shake hands with me. I am from where the sun rises, and
near his Great Father's lodge, in the great village of Washing
ton, where I have often seen and shaken hands with many
of the great men of the Indian race. I have come a long
way to see them in their own country, that when I go back to
their Great Father, I may be able to tell him how his red
children are — ^what are their wants — and before I go, if I can,
to make peace among them." The moment this was interpreted,
the whole party gave a grunt of approbation, long, and loud
and emphatic; when a tall, aged, and good-looking Indian,
from his position on the extreme jright, walked and shook
bands with me most cordially. I asked his name — and then

1867] Winnebago War 193

calling him by it, said : ''You hold in your hand, the hand of a
friend and brother' — when the whole party advanced, and
shook hands with me.

Seeing their village at about a quarter of a mile back on
the plain, I asked to be allowed to go there, that I might
shake hands with the squaws and papooses, and ' make them
some presents. We marched to the village. A buffalo robe
was spread out for me to sit upon, the calumet lighted, and we
smoked — I, according to my custom, (for I never smoke) blow-
ing the smoke out of the bowl of the pipe, like a steam-engine.
T was never suspected of not relishing this great luxury, the
prized, and cherished, and enjoyed alike by savage and civil-
ized man. This ceremony over, I directed Ben to cut up the
twists of tobacco into smaller portions, and divide it among the
men. Ben was so much relieved of his terrors, as to be spe-
cially prompt, on this occasion, and he so employed his eye in
counting, and his judgment in cutting* up the tobacco, as to
make it hold out exactly; for this I gave him gTeat commenda-
tion. The distribution of the tobacco having 'been made, and
to the high gratification of this tobacco-loving people, I pro-
ceeded to distribute the jewelry, consisting of finger-rings^
made of cheap metals set with variously colored glass, and ear-
bobs, &c. These I threw by the handful, on the ground, which
produced an excitement, and a display of muscular dexterity
which told well for the activity of these at other times, indo-
lent-looking squaws. The scene was a literal scramble, and it
was carried on with the energies of the prize-fighter, and
amidst expressions of mingled joy and surprise, that made the
affair quite a circumstance in the lives of these poor destitute
people. I was happy myself, in seeing them so.

After an hour spent in these ceremonies, I told the chief I
was short of hands, and wanted two of his braves to accom-
pany me to Prairie Du Chien. He shook his head, and said,
'^Sac and Fox Indians kill them." Never, I assured him,
while they were with me; and that I would promise they
should come home in safety, laden with presents. He assented,
when there was a general rush of young men as volunteers.

194 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

I put a hand on the two who were nearest to me, and said —
I take these, because they came first, and not because of any
preference; for I know they are all brave men and true. I
now felt secure for the remainder of the distance to the Prai-
rie, and immediately embarked and continued my voyage.

At La Petite Roche, forty-five miles from the Portage, at
eight o'clock in the evening, we fell in with Gen. Atl^inson and
his command. His barges were arranged alongside the bank of
the river, and moored there. These long keel-boats, some as
much as thirty tons burden, with the sails of several of them
hanging quietly in the calm of the evening against the masts ;
the numerous fires that lined the shores, around which a large
portion of the Greneral's command of seven hundred men were
gathered, gave to the place the appearance of a sea-port. The
general hum of voices, the stroke of the axe, with the con-
fused noises made of it, in so out-of-the-way a place, where
never before had such circumstances combined, a sort of spirit-
scene; especially as the moon's light invested the whole, being
made pale by the many lights, and yet paler with an occasional
half-obscuration caused by the rolling up of denser portions of
the smoke from these numerous fires. Everything in nature
by which we were surrounded was still, save only the sounds
that proceeded from this spot, and the plash of the paddles of
our canoes. Presently a sentinel challenged, and demanded
the countersign. I told him who I was, and that I was bearer
of tidings from Major Whistler's command, (which I had left
that morning at the Portage,) to Gen. Atkinson. The ser-
geant of the guard was called, who making this message known
to Gen. Atkinson, we were invited to come alongside his barge,
and (he being confined to his berth by a slight attack of fever)
down into the cabin to see him.

We were received with the courtesy that always distinguished
this gallant officer, when I went rapidly over the events that
had transpired, and informed him of the surrender of the mur-
derers; commended the Ked Bird to all the kind usage which
his unfortunate condition would permit, and especially urged
that he might not be put in irons. I did this, because I very

1867]

Winnebago War 195

well knew he would suffer a thousand deaths rather than at-
tempt to regain his liberty. There was no mistake in this mat-
tc^r. The man had literally already parted from life, and had
his eyes fixed more upon the spirit-land, than upon coming in
contact again with the bitter realities of the world around him.
All this passed, and pledging each other in a glass of wine,
and our best wishes for the General's health, we continued our
voyage till ten at night, when we landed on a sand-bar for re-
pose. Myriads of musquitoes assailed us. Finding it impos-
sible to endure their assaults, we determined to fly; so at two
in the morning we struck our tents, and were again afloat, and
going finely to the tune of the boat songs.

At seven the next morning we were thirty miles below our
encampment, and forty-five from La Petite Roche. The varied
and bold shores of the river continued still to increase in in-
terest. The color of the water is the same, and sc^ is the loose
and movable material of the bottom of the river; the sand of
which it is composed being so fine, as when touched by any-
thing, is seen to stream otf in the direction of whatever cur-
rent may be the strongest. To this cause may be attributed
the formation of the numerous sand-bars and islands that
abound in this river. Gen. Atkinson doubtless knew the
nature of the passage he would have to make, and how diffi-
cult is the navigation of the Ouisconsin, owing to the ever-
varying course of its channel, and its shallowness; and hence
he secured boats that did not draw over twelve or eighteen
inches of water.

Everything indicates a recession of the waters of this river.
The water-marks, sometimes high up on its shores, and bluffs,
and hill-sides, as well as the form and fertility of the bottom
lands and prairies, all tell, in very plain language, that this
river was once, — but when, who knows? — capable of swim-
ming navies. Many a tall ship might have rested on the bo-
som of this once wide and deep, but now narrow and shallow
river; and anchors might have been let go, the noise of whose
chain cables would have resounded amid,st those hills like
rumbling thunder. Hills, vast, towering, irregular, many of
14

196 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

them circular-crowned, increased as we approached the Missis-
sippi ; and between them, stretching far off in the interior, are
beautiful savannas, widening as they recede from the river, and
then terminate in fertile and richly clad table lands.

At about sundown, we arrived at the junction of the Ouis-
consin with the Mississippi. Being in advance of the Count,
v^e landed, taking from our canoe as much baggage as would
make room for him and the remainder of the company, Ben,
on the arrival of the Count, being transferred to his cunoe, and
left in charge of the baggage; when we rounded to, upon the
Mississippi, and against the current of the river, arriving at
Prairie Du Chien at eight o'clock, in the softest, and brightest,
and purest moonlight I had ever beheld. I thought of every
scene of the sort I had ever seen, and of which I had ever read ;
of that hour when Shakespeare watched and loved the beams
of this beautiful orb, until he said —

"How sweet those moonbeams sleep on yonder bank !"

of those nights when I used to sit on the shore of Lake Su-
perior, where I thought light so pure, so all-encircling, never
came from the moon before, and where the rain-bow also took
precedence, in the gorgeousness of its dies, in the breadth and
nearness of its bases, so near, sometimes, as to produce an ir-
resistible motion to wash my hands in the falling glory. I
have often since sought to give precedence to that lovely bow
that spanned the Potomac, the frigate Brandywine immedi-
ately beneath the center of its arch, on board of which we had,
but a few hours before, placed the good La Fayette, on his re-
turn from this country to his La Belle France. But it was vain.
The rain-bow of Lake Superior has had, can have, no equal;
but the moonlight of the Mississippi, on that night when I
first beheld this Father of Rivers, will take precedence of all
I have ever seen before. How I wish I could paint it! The
moon above, and the river beneath me; the glory of the
heavens, and the silver-tipped ripples of the Mississippi,
and the pearl-tinged forests, made brighter by the contrast
of the dark recesses into which the moonlight had not entered,

1867] Winnebago War igy

with the associations of the scenes around me — Pike's Hill, so
named in honor of the gallant officer of that name, beii^ just
opposite — all combined, as the canoe was wheeled out upon the
river, to fill me T,dth emotions strange, bewildering, yet sooth-
ing; and then there was the grateful sense which my heart
cherished for the security with which the unseen, though ever-
present God, had ever blessed us. I had no language to ex-
press all these then, and I have none now; but the memory of
it will never die !

We were now on the theatre of the recent Indian murders,
tidings of which had gone forth; and reaching St. Louis and
Jefferson Barracks, upon the one hand, and Green Bay and
Fort Howard upon the other, had put in motion about a thou-
sand men, to interpose the appropriate shield to arrest and ex-
tinguish the spirit that had led to these butcheries. Well
would it have been, if, when the bayonets of the nation had
been dispatched to punish the unenlightened, the untutored
Indians, for the execution of the provisions of the Lex Talionis,
the only law known to them, a corresponding energy, and the
adequate power, had been employed to compel the civilized of
our own race to treat these unfortunate people as human be-
ings, and if there could be found no place for kindness in these
relations, to enforce the obligation to treat them with at least
common justice.

Prairie Du Chien is said to have been once the seat of a
Fox Chief named The Dog. The level land, upon part of
which the village stands, was once, doubtless, part of the bed
of the Mississippi. When forsaken by the waters, the channels
of the river running close to the opposite or southern shore,
the deserted lands became a prairie. Being now shorn of
its native grass and flowers, the entire area has become a waste.
When a prairie The Dog was its principal occupant, with his
band perhaps, and its owner — ^when the French gave it the
appellation it yet bears of La PrairHe Du Chien, or the Prairie
of the Dog.

This area is composed of several thousand acres of land.
From W. S. W. to N. N. E., (the Mississippi running at this

1 98 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

place due IT. N. W., and being not over four hundred yards
wide) it may be one mile and a half in breadth, and in length
from four to five miles. The hills opposite rise abruptly out
of the river. They are irregular, but covered with trees. On
the east are hills corresponding in height, but wearing no foli-
age. The rocks rise to some three hundred feet above their
base, with a show of the blue and the white of the lime of
which they are composed, and with many a water mark to tell
how high up their towering ascent the waters of the Missis-
sippi once reached. And then the most hasty glance will sat-
isfy any one that the two sides were once united; but in what
age of the world, nobody can tell. Ages may have been re-
quired for the waters of the Mississippi to have worn away the
opposing masses, making for their transit to the ocean so wide
a passage as is now opened at that spot; and yet, only about
four hundred yards of it are now occupied by the descending
waters.

The buildings of the Prairie are of wood, are old, and gen-
erally in a stat^ of decay. The only two good houses here are
Joseph Eolette's, and a trader's by the name of Lockwood,
I believe. There appeared to be about one hundred of these
decaying tenements, the old picket Fort standing on the plain,
a little north of the village, quite a ruin.

My first duty on arriving at the Prairie was to fulfil my
promise made to the Indian chief, by returning to him safely
his two young braves, laden with presents. I took them to
the public store, and literally loaded them with good and use-
ful Indian supplies, and of every variety. This done I pro-
cured an escort to attend and protect them on their journey
across the country to their village. They arrived, as I after-
wards learned, in safety. I have often heard since of the in-
quiries which these people make after the "Big Captain," as
their Indian term, applied to myself, being interpreted, im-
ports; the prefix "big," not relating so much to my size, as to
their conception of my capacity to confer benefits upon them,
and from my relations to the Government.

This duty performed, I rode to the scene of the recent mur-

1867] Winnebago War 199

ders, attended by my companions, including Ben, who mani-
fested great anxiety to see the place where the Indian had
actually carried out upon others, those plans of destruction
which he had so often anticipated would be made personal to
himself. The scene of these butcheries is distant from the vil-
lage, in an easterly direction, about three miles. I received
the whole story from the widow of one of the murdered men,
Gagnier by name, who was, at the time, proprietor of the log
house in which he was killed. Gagnier was a half-breed, his
mother having been Indian, and his father French. The door
of this one-story log tenement fronts e^st, and a window oppo-
site, of course, west. A large tree grows near its south-western
corner. Gagnier was sitting on a chest, on the left of the
door. At the window his wife was washing clothes; on her
left was the bed, in which a child, eleven months old, was
sleeping. On her right, and a little back of her, sat a dis-
charged soldier, named Lipcap; and this was the situation of
the family when Wan-nig-sootsh-kau, or the Red Bird, We-
kau, or The Sun, and a third Indian entered. Visits of In-
dians being common, no particular attention was paid to them.
They were, however, received with the usual civility, and asked
if they would have something to eat. They said yes, and
would like some fish and milk.

Gagnier had, meantime, seen something peculiar in the
looks and movements of these Indians, as is supposed, which
led him to reach up, and take from brackets just over his head,
his rifle, which, as Mrs. Gagnier turned to get the fish and
milk, she saw lying across Gagnier's lap. At the moment
she heard the click caused by the cocking of the Ked-Bird's
rifle, which was instantly followed by its discharge. She
looked and saw that her husband was shot. At the same mo-
ment, the third Indian shot old Lipcap, when Mrs. Gagnier
seeing We-kau, who had lingered about the door, about to
rush in, she met him, made fight, and wrested from him his
rifle. He ran out, she pursuing him, employing all her ener-
gies to cock the rifle and shoot him, but, by some mysterious
cause, was rendered powerless — "feeling," as she expressed it,

2 00 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

"like one in a dream, trying to call, or to run, but without the
ability to do either." To save himself, We-kau kept running
round the big tree at the corner of the house, well knowing if
he should put off in a line, she would have better aim, and be
more likely to kill him. After a few turns round the tree,
and finding she had no power over the rifle, she turned short
about, and made for the village, bearing the rifle with her, to
give the alarm; which, being given, she returned, followed by
a posse of armed men, and found her infant, which she had
left, covered up in the bed ,on the floor, scalped, and its neck
cut, just below the occiput, to the bone. This was the work of
We-kau, who being intent on having a scalp — the other two
having secured theirs — there being no other subject, took one
from the head of the child. The knife, from the examination
made of the head, was applied in front of the crown, and
brought round by the right ear, and far down behind, and up
again on the other side, the object seeming to be, to get as
much hair as he could. In the turn of the knife, at the back
of the head, the deep cut was given, which found its way to
the bone.

The child, when I saw it, was comfortable, and I believe it
recovered — ^but the sight of a rifle, even at that tender age,
when one might suppose it could not distinguish between a rifle
and anything else, would terrify it almost into fit&. Young as
it was, it must, from its place in the bed, have seen a rifle, in
connection with what it was made itself, so immediately after,
to suffer. I made the mother presents for herself and child.

Governor Cass, after our first parting at Green Bay, arrived
at the Prairie just after these murders had been committed.
The inhabitants being, as was natural, in a state of great alarm,
he devised the best means of defence in his power, and de-
scended the Mississippi with tidings of the out-break, to G^n.
Atkinson. From the day the Governor left Green Bay, till his
return to it, which was four weeks, he had voyaged in a bark
canoe sixteen hundred miles — this was going at an average rate
of about sixty miles the day, including a tarry of one day at
the Prairie, and three at St. Louis.

1867] Winnebago War 201

^Notwithstanding we bore to the Prairie the ti3ings of the
surrender, there still remained, in the minds of the inhabitants,
some lingering apprehensions that more of the same kind of
bloody work might await them. They thought the war-cloud
had not yet spent itself. But nothing surprised them so much,
as that the hitherto peace-loving Red Bird should have been
guilty of such conduct. He was not only well-known, but
was, also, the pride of the Prairie. Such was the confidence
reposed in him, that he was always sought after as a protector,
and his presence was looked upon as a pledge of security
against any out-break that might be attempted. Indeed, when
husbands, and brothers, and sons, had occasion to leave their
homes, the families considered themselves quite secure, if the
Red Bird could be procured to see to their safety. What had
happened to induce him to act the part he had acted, was a
mystery to all. As to We-kau, he was known and abhorred
as one of the most bloody-minded of his race. Of the third,
whose name I could not learn, they loiew but little.

All this mystery, however, was, at last, solved. There had
been great indignities offered to the band near the St. Peters,
to which Red Bird had become allied, and personal violence
committed upon some of their leading men, and by those
whose station ought to have taught them better; and whose
authority and power should have been differently exercised.
The leading chiefs counselled upon those acts of violence, and
resolved on enforcing the Indian's law — retaliation. Red Bird
was called upon to go out, and 'Hake meatj' as they phrase it.
Not wishing to appear a coward, he undertook the enterprise,
secretly rejoicing that the business had been referred to him;
for he resolved to make a circuit, and return, saying he could
find no meat. He did so, and was upbraided, and taunted,
and called ''coward,'' and told that he knew very well, if he
had the spirit to avenge the wrongs of his people, he could, by
going to the Prairie, get as much meat as he could bring home.
This fired him, and he resolved to redeem his character as a
brave; when, beckoning to We-kau, and another Indian, he
told them to follow him. They proceeded to the Prairie.

2 02 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

Gagnier's was not the first house they entered, with the view
of carrying out their purpose. If I mistake not, their first
visit was to the house of Mr. Lockwood, who was then ab-
sent. His interesting wife was at home, and her life was un-
doubtedly saved by the presence of an old Frenchman on a
visit to her, who not only understood the Winnebago language,
but knew the parties; and he also was known to them. They
had respect for him — ^he had been their friend. So, after lin-
gering about the house for a season, they quit the premises,
and crossed the prairie to Gagnier's, and there executed their
bloody purpose, as I have narrated.*

Addressing a few lines to Gen. Atkinson, still urging a
lenient treatment for the Ked Bird, I prepared for the descent
of the Mississippi; and^ accordingly, after having partaken of
the hospitality of Eolette, I embarked with my party
in my bark canoe, and at 3 P. M., of the 8th of Sep-
tember, I was again upon the bosom of the Mississippi, and
going, with its descending current, onward to St. Louis. Con-
tinued on till 6 o'clock that evening, and encamped twenty
miles below. What had been selected as a place of repose for
the night, proved to be a musquito hive — for they literally
swarmed there. At six in the morning, after a night of suffer-
ing, caused by the stings of those pestilent lancers, and of in-
convenience occasioned by the rain, we pursued our voyage.
The bed of the river had now widened to about two miles —
the shores on the eastern side broken, scalloped, and barren of
trees, with nothing of verdure but grass; whilst on the west-
ern, they were crowned with trees, and altogether very beau-
tiful.

Arriving at Du Buque's, sixty miles below the Prairie, we

♦Besides Red Bird and We-kau, there were three other Indians imprisoned.
Red Bird died in prison. Two of the prisoners were eventually discharged
for lack of evidence against them ; while We-kau or Wa-ni-ga, or The Sun, and
probably his and Red-Bird's accomplice in the Gagnier and Lipcap murder,
Chick-hon-sic, or Little Boeuf, or, more properly, The Buffalo Calf, were tried
and convicted and by Judge Doty sentenced to be hung December 26, 1828.
President Adams, however, sent on a pardon bearing date November 3, 1828,
upon the receipt of which they were liberated. Judge Gale, in an unpublished
paper read before the Society, states that Wb-kau, or The Bun died of the small-
pox at Prairie du Chien in 1836 ; and the Buffalo Cale\ about 1847, and was
buried three miles above Galesville, on the high bank on the west side of
Beaver Creek.

Rbd-Bibd. says Judge Galb. left a son. who died in 1853. on the St. Peter's

1867] Winnebago War 203

stopped, and visited his grave. This grave is on a high bluff,
or point of land, formed by the junction of the Black Kiver
with the Mississippi, on the west side of the latter. A village
of Eox Indians occupied the low lands south of the bluff —
of these Indians we procured the guide who piloted us to Du
Buque's last resting place. The ascent was rather fatiguing.
Over the grave was a stone, covered with a roof of wood.
Upon the stone was a cross, on which was carved, in rude let-
ters, ^'Julian Du Buque, died 24:th March, 1810, aged 45
years/' Near by was the burial spot of an Indian Chief. We
returned to our canoes, embarked, and proceeded sixteen miles
farther, to Eever River, and up that River to Galena, arriving
after night-fall. The river sent forth a most disagreeable odor.
It appeared to be the very hotbed of bilious fever. At Ga-
lena, I visited the mines and smelting establishments, at that
time in their infancy. In the previous July, eight hundred
thousand pounds of lead had been smelted, and, perhaps, a
million pounds in August.

The Winnebagoes were in a state of great excitement, caused
by the intrusions of the whites on their lands. They had, af-
ter having remonstrated for a long time in vain, made up their
minds to endure it no longer, and had so informed Mr. Con-
ner, the sub-agent. A warning was circulated among the
miners, who replied, "we have the right to go just where we
please." Everything appeared threatening. Two thousand
persons were said to be over the lines, as intruders upon lands
belonging to the Indians. The Indians had fallen back, and
sent word to the sub-agent, that "he would see them no more"
— meaning as friends.

The white population was supposed to be, at that time, from
three to ^Ye thousand, the larger portion at Galena. At least
fifteen hundred, alarmed for their safety, caused by the appre-
hended disturbances, had quit the country. There appeared to
be no time to lose; and as justice was all these harassed peo-
ple desired, I adopted measures, at once, to secure it to them,
by restoring to them their rightful possessions. A general re-
turn to a peaceful order of things immediately ensued.

2 04 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

This overt act, this trespass on their grounds, was the egg out
of which the Mack Hawk war was hatched. There was no ne-
cessity for that war, when, some few years after, it did break
out. It was only needed that the same justice should be con-
tinued to the Indians; the same regard shown to their rights,
and that war would never have occurred. At the time it broke
out, the places that had hitherto been filled by those whose ex-
perience had fitted them for the rightful and harmonious ad-
justment of such difficulties, were filled with strangers. Hence
the Black Hawk war; and hence, also, the Seminole war.
Injustice and bad faith, coonbined with the absence of the need-
ed intelligence, and that indispensable pre-requisite, experience
— ^were the causes of both these wars, and of the waste of the
blood and treasure that attended them; but the loss of this
blood, and of this treasure, could be endured, if, in the origin
and progress, and termination of these wars, the national honor
had not been tarnished, and our name, as a people and nation,
held up to the civilized world as unjust, cruel and treacherous.
It is painful to recur, even thus slightly, to the history of those
wars, and, for the present, I pass on,, first recording my judg-
ment against them, against their necessity, and against the
policy that originated them, as well as the measures that were
adopted for carrying them on.

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 205

Early Wisconsin

By John H. Fonda

The following series of historical papers were written by the editor of the
Prairie du Chien Courier, as dictated by the aged pioneer, whose name they
bear, and appeared in that paper, commencing with the number of Feb. 15th,
1856, and extending into May following. "We would advise all," says the
editor, "to read the Early Reminiscences, as they are extremely interesting, and
contain many historical facts, that will pay for the time spent in perusal. The
subject of these sketches has been in the West for over forty years, and thirty
years a resident of Prairie du Chien. He has lived to see most of the early
pioneers carried to the grave. His life has been an eventful one, abounding in
incidents of travel, camp and field, that will prove interesting to our readers.
They are as correct and truthful as memory can make them."

Mr. Fonda was born in Watervliet, Albany county, N. Y., and is still resid-
ing in Prairie du Chien. We have the high authority of the venerable Rev.
Alfred Brunson, of Prairie du Chien, for assuring the reader, that "Mr.
Fonda's narrative is as reliable as anything of the kind given from memory."

No. I.

Some few evenings ago, we were sitting by the fireside, in
the house of one of the oldest pioneers now living at Prairie
Du Chien, and listening, as is our wont, to the early history of
the country, as the old settler related it. His seemed to have
been an eventful life, and at our earnest solicitation "he lived
his life o'er again." Below we give a part of the old back-
woodsman's history:

You want to know my history? But it's not the first time
I have been asked to tell it. In the year 1840, there was a
person who came out here to talk with the old residents, and
get facts, from which to write a book. He often came to my.
house to hear me talk. I told him a great many anecdotes,
traditions, and incidents of frontier life, but though I read his

2o6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

book afterwards, I could not recognize them, for lie had dressed
them up in new language, or changed their meaning en-
tirely.

Well, IVe been over about every one of the States, and Ter-
ritories, which, let me tell you, is a good deal of country, and
I hope, before I die, to travel over some of it again; especi-
ally that portion between here and York State. I was born
in Albany County, ]^. Y., and of a good family. My
father kept me at school, until I had obtained what was then
called a good English education, and it being my parent's de-
sire that I should follow a profession, he placed me in the
office of a prominent lawyer, in my native town, where I
studied law, with the assistance of the lawyer and his large
law library. But, after remaining in the lawyer's office about
two years, I caught the emigration fever, a disease that pre-
vailed pretty generally, at that time, and a company being
about to start for Texas, I took advantage of the circumstance
to satisfy my desire for travel, and cast my lot with them.
Bidding my folks a long farewell — (long, for I've never seen
them since) — ^we departed to seek adventure in the Far West
And we got our share, I tell you! This was more than forty
years ago, and the country west of the Alleghany Mountains
was new. Few and far between were the white settlements,
while the country was filled with tribes of Indians, who hunted
the deer, bear, elk, and other game that afforded food or fur.

Our course lead through the Stat^ to Buffalo, where we took
boat to Cleveland, thence south through the State of Ohio to
Cincinnati, where we embarked on flat-boats, and floated down
the Ohio River into the Mississippi, which we went down as
far as IsTatchez. At l^atchez we stopped to sell the flat-boats.
The inhabitants were French, Spaniards and Creoles. The
boats were sold to an old half-breed trader named Le Blanc,
for some horses, a covered wagon and a team of mules. Before
leaving IsTatchez, one of our party was seized with the yellow
fever and died. After burying our comrade, and completing
our outfit, we were ferried over to the west side of the Missis-
sippi into Xouisiana, by the old trader, who charged an exor-

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 207

bitant price for liis service — so mucli so, that I remomber the
company went on without paying him.

From Natchez we traveled directly west until we struck the
Red River; this we followed up stream as high as where the
Fort Towson Barracks are, and camped on a branch, or creek,
called Le Bontte Run. Here the emigrants halted for a while
ta recruit, and holding a consultation for future proceedings,
which resulted in a determination to settle on the prairie land
near what they called the Cross Timbers, a tract of country
watered by numerous streams, well timbered, and with soil of
the richest qualities. But the novelty the journey promised
at the start, had been sobered down to a stern reality during-
the last six months, and instead of accompanying the party
into the then Mexican territory, I remained with a Scotchman,
who had taken a Choctaw squaw for a wife, and kept a trad-
ing post on the head waters of the Sabine River. With this
Scotchman, I stayed during the winter 1819, and in the spring
of 1820 went down to New Orleans, with ^ve voyageurs, to
get a keel-boat load of goods for the Scotch trader, who had
entrusted me with the business, for he took a liking to me,
and knew of no other person in whom he could put as much
confidence. The Red River was a narrow, crooked, turbid
stream, steep banks on either side, and filled with snags; but
the winter rains had swollen it, so we floated down without
accident.

On reaching New Orleans, I had no little trouble with the
boatmen, whom I did not know how to manage at that time,
though experience afterwards taught me the nyodus operandi.

It was eight or ten weeks before I had collected all the In-
dian goods; but what hindered most was the indolence of the
French voyageurs, who would go to some of the low dance
houses in the town, and spree all night, which made them use-
less all the next day ; so in one or two instances I was obliged
to hire Creoles to assist in loading goods that had been brought
to the river.

One evening after the boat's load was complete, and the men
pretty well over the previous night's frolic, I gave orders to

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move up stream. But, as for starting to go back, the men
wouldn't listen to anything of the kind, as there was to be a
grand fandango in town that night, and they had all an-
ticipated going there. They went, and I remained on board
all night to watch the boat and goods.

!N'ext morning the men came staggering in, and threw them-
selves down on the rolls of calico and blankets, where they
slept until afternoon. About two o'clock they had all got up,
and were preparing some food, when I gave them to under-
stand that we must start at sun-down. They gave no answer,
and having ate, they went to sleep again.

As the sun was going out of sight, I roused the men, direct-
ing them to get out the tow-line, poles, and to run up stream.
Thej paid no attention to what I said, but gathered around one
of their number, a big half-breed, who insolently told me that
it would be impossible for us to ascend Red River, because of
high water and the strong current at this season of the year. I
knew the fellow was lying, for I had seen the river the last
summer, and knew that if we had any trouble it would be from
low water. And I was obliged to give the man a severe
whaling, tying his hands and feet, and threatening the others
with a similar dose, before they would go to their duty.

The men worked steadily that night, part of the time towing
and poling, and sometimes taking advantage of the eddies in
the lea of projecting points. The big half-breed begged to be
released the next morning, and made no more trouble during the
trip. The boat soon entered Red River, where we found suffici-
ent water to float us, but had to make a number of portages be-
fore reaching what is called La Grange, a small French settler
ment, (the French claimed all west of the Mississippi in those
days,) but the men did not offer to leave at this point, for they
paid strict obedience to me since I punished their leader, and
were growing more respectful each day as we approached the
end of our journey.

We started in June, and had been gone three months, and it
being September, I was anxious to get back, for the goods were
much needed at the trading post.

1867] Reminiscences ot Wisconsin 209

On the 23(i of September, (I kept a journal,) we were met
about twenty miles below the trader's block-house, by one of
his half-breed sons, who had come to take command of the
keel-boat and crew, so I might go ahead and give in my report
of the trip, before the boat-men had a chance to make any of
their usual complaints. This custom was undoubtedly a good
one, though I did not take advantage of it to the detriment of
the men, but gave a favorable report of everything. When
the boat arrived, Mons. Jones, as the old Scotchman was called,
met them as they landed, praised the men for their faithful-
ness, and paid them what little might be due them, giving to
each a trifling present. 'Now, I had observed while acting as
clerk the previous winter, that a few beads, paintsi or cheap
calicoes, would purchase many valuable furs; and after going
down with the bales of skins, I had learned how, after receiv-
ing the cargo of goods, that a considerable sum was placed to
my employer's credit, which made the fur trade appear very
profitable in my eyes. So I readily agreed to receive what
wages were due me, in goods, hoping to make a large profit on
them. The old Scotchman did not seem over pleased with the
goods I had selected by his direction; however, he paid me
with some of them.

And thus ended my connection with the first and last expe-
dition that I ever accompanied on Red River, or the lower
Mississippi, and also the detailed account of it, which is as
correct as memory will allow me to relate.

I clerked for the trader during the fall and winter of 1820,
but had very few opportunities to sell my goods, for good rea-
sons : first, the goods I had were not suitable ; and if they had
been, I could not have traded them, for the old Scotchman, who
had been an engage in the Hudson Bay Fur Company, was
exceedingly grasping, and could not let me buy fur on private
account, any where near the trading post. This prompted me
to make several excursions among the Shawnee and Osage In-
dians, from whom I got a few packs of valuable fur. But,
though there was an excitement about a trader's life that had
a charm for me, yet often, when camped by a sheltered spring.

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ambition would whisper, "you have aaother mission to
fulfill."

Soon after the grass was well up, in the Spring of '23, 1 put
my trappings on board of an old pack-mule, and straddling a
mustang colt, started for Santa Fe along with two fellows who
had come up from ISlew Orleans. My companions were agree-
able enough, but seemed to have no other motive than to see
the country, and enjoy some of the pleasures of hunter life,
they had "heered tell on."

We traveled to the source of E-ed River through the Co-
manche country, north to the forks of the Canadian River
where we took the old Santa. Fe Trail, which led us over and
through the southern spur of the Rocky Mountains, to Santa
Fe, where we arrived without any of those thrilling adven-
tures, or Indian fights, that form the burden of many travelers*
stories. We had expected to meet Indians, and were prepared
for them, but aside from a party of Kioways, with whom I
tried to trade, we did not see any.

At Santa Fe, I lost sight of my traveling companions among
the traders, and soon left the trading post for Taos, where I
passed the winter. The houses were all one story high, and
built of clay or large gray brick. The people were Spaniards,
Mexicans, Indians, a mixed breed, and a sprinkling of trappers.

Taos was a lively wintering place, and many were the fan-
dangoes, frolics, and fights, which came off during the season
I stayed there. But, though at an age when a young man is
most impulsive, I seldom had a desire to join in the dance, and
never had but two personal affrays, which, owing to my super-
ior strength, terminated in my favor.

In May, 1824, I had become perfectly disgusted with Taos,
and inhabitants, for the latter were a lazy, dirty, ignorant set,
and as a whole, possessed less honor than the beggaily Win-
nebagoes about Prairie Du Chien, at the present time. Inform-
ing the Spaniard of my intention to leave, I went down to
Santa Fe. Here I found a company of traders preparing to
cross the plains, and soon made the acquaintance of a St.
Louis merchant, who engaged me to oversee the loading and

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 211

Tinloading of his three wagons, when ever it was necessary to
cross a stream, which frequently happened.

The whole caravan of. wagons, cattle, oxen, horses, mules
left Sante Fe in good condition; but the number that reached
the Missouri Eiver, was not so large — ^the oxen and cattle died
from thirst, the horses and mules became exhausted and were
left — and disease did the business for the men in some cases.
It was a hard journey, and one that I never cared to repeat.
Yet, it has always appeared to me, that the barren country,
east of the Canadian River, would at some day, prove val-
uable. It is rich in minerals. The ground in some places was
covered with pieces of a crustated substance, that tasted like
saleratus. There were several springs of a volcanic nature.

From the merchant, whose name was Campbell, I learned
much of Mexico, its climate, products, people and geopraphy.
He had been down the Del Norte, and into the interior as far
as Sonora, where he married the daughter of a Mexican. I
took great pleasure in hearing this man talk, and probably I
gained more knowledge of Mexico from his conversation, than
in any other way.

It was October before we got to Saint Louis, which place T
saw for the first time, and Campbell having no further need
of my services, paid me in hard Mexican dollars, and I left,
him.

Having now been absent from home about six years, andi
possessing the meaas to carry me back, I was tempted to return-
But chance threw me into the society of a person named
Knox, a mason by trade, who persuaded me to follow the
same business. Being naturally of a mechanical turn, I was
soon able to earn fair wages. I worked steadily at the mason
work and at brick laying, for fifteen months, at the end of
which period I was dubbed a mason, and could also do a pas-
sable job of plastering — the last accomplishment stood me in-
pretty well, when Fort Crawford was built.

It was in the year 1825 that I had heard of Prairie Du
Chien, and made up my mind to see the country in that direc-
tion. But before proceeding to give you an account of the early
15

2 12 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

history of Wisconsin, as far back as the year 1825, let me first
tell you what hardy exercise and Western life have done for
my constitution.

No. 2

I should have told you, that when a boy I was uncommonly
large for my years; and it was my delight to swim, ride,
run, wrestle, fish and hunt, in all which robust and athletic
sports, I greatly excelled. And it is possible, that this love
of sport, interfered not a little with the course of my studies,
for my father sometimes had to reprimand me, and limited
my hunting excursions to one day in the week, and that
was generally Saturday. So, in consideration of the short
allowance that the restriction gave me, I frequently extended
my hunts to two days, thus including the first day of the week,
and appropriating it to my purpose. I can recollect on one
•occasion, when about sixteen years of age, I was along with
two or three young companions, hunting ducks and other
^water fowl, on a small branch of the Mohawk river. It was in
the spring of the year, and one of the early freshets caused
by the melting of the snows on the Catskill mountains, had
swollen the creek and overflowed large tracts of low land,
thus forming an admirable feeding ground for mallard, wid-
geon and numerous other wild-fowl, that instinct taught to
leave the sea coast for these inland marshes, where the food
they liked was most plenty. The ducks flew best in the morn-
ing and latter part of the afternoon, and were almost as abun-
dant as they are here on the Mississippi.

What I am now going to relate, happened on our second
day out, which perchance was one of those first days of the
week. We had hunted with good success the day before, and
were determined to have one day more. But the wind had
changed, and the weather was raw, and though we waited pa-
tiently all the forenoon, the ducks did not come in much, so
very few were killed. It was very cold and chilly, but having
forgot the tinder-box, (there were no phosphorus matches then)

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 213

we did not light a fire as we would like to have done. Late in
the afternoon, as we were lying in a clump of willows, on a sort
of peninsula between the stream and a pond made by the rise,
the ducks began to fly over us in clouds and settle down on
the pond. This was what we had been waiting for; but while
waiting, we had got so benumbed by the cold wind, that it was
with difiiculty we could load our guns, and after discharging
them with indifferent success, I was determined to have a fire,
before another duck was shot at. So, directing my com-
panions to collect what dry leaves, twigs and wood they could,
I proceeded to ignite it in this manner: Having arranged the
leaves and twigs properly, I took a piece of gun-wadding, and
filling it with powder, laid it among the leaves, upon which a
handful of powder was also thrown. After this, I opened the
pan of my fowling-piece — percussion caps being unheard of at
that time — and putting in a good priming, pulled back the
hammer, and placing the gun near the leaves, pulled the
trigger. The ''flash-in-the-pan,'' was instantaneously followed
by another flash that made me start backward, with haste.
My hair and eye-brows were badly burnt, and my right hand
was severely scorched.

The fire burned briskly in the willows, but I had enough
fire in my hand, without wishing for more. As we rode home
that evening, few words were spoken, and when the wagon
stopped in front of our house, I alighted, and went directly to
my room. S'o severe were my burns, that they kept me con-
fined to the house for six long weeks; during this time I was
under the care of my mother. God bless her! she is dead
now. That kind mother tried to impress upon my mind the
duty I owed to my Heavenly Father — she advised me to re-
gard the commandment, ^'Kemember the Sabbath, &'c," and
those early injunctions have never been forgotten, though often
disregarded. But it was not until the following fall, that I
shouldered my gun and commenced to hunt again. Then
came back my old roving habit — ^with it the fondness for man-
ly sports, hunting included.

This early training, together with the almost constant ex-

2 14 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

ercise I had experienced, during my wandering mode of life,
had toughened my muscles and so completely developed me
physically, that I was no mean match for two ordinary men;
besides, the desire to behold new scenes, had grown stronger
than ever.

It was no other than a natural consequence then, that hav-
ing heard of Prairie Da Chien, and the "Lead Diggings"
south-east of it, that I should have a desire to take a trip up
the Mississippi Eiver to the Mineral Eegion; from where re-
ports came, of fortunes being made by prospecting — these
stories formed alluring inducements.

Having some money, and a sound constitution that five
years of border life had made capable of enduring any degree
of hardship and fatigue, I left St. Louis, and started up the
river in a little Ohio steam-boat, — I believe steam-boats com-
menced running above St. Louis the same year I left, 1825, —
loaded with army stores for military posts on the Upper Mis-
sissippi. The boat proceeded up stream 'till we reached the
mouth of the Illinois River, where we met a keel-boat coming
down, on board of which was an express, bound with dis-
patches for the commanding officer at Jefferson Barracks.
They brought reports of Indian murders in the north, and
the same boat bearing the dispatches had been attached,
and had many ball marks on its sides, also a wounded man on
board. The steam-boat took the express aboard, and was about
to return with him, to St. Louis, so I bid Captain Bates good-
bye, and left his boat. I learned now, that the Mining Region
was the scene of the Indian troubles — that the inhabitants
were leaving the country through fear, and the greatest mis-
ery and confusion prevailed at the "Diggings." So, instead
of continuing up the Mississippi as intended, I joined a party
of five Frenchmen, who designed going to Green Bay, and
having no definite object in view at the time, I agreed to go
with them. We had little knowledge of the route, but one of
the Frenchmen had somewhere seen an old outline map, and
assured us we could reach the Lakes by going up the Illinois
river. We had entered the river and gone up a few miles

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 215

from its mouth, when we were seen by some Indians, who
made signs for us to approach the shore.

After some hesitation we landed, and, to the disappointment
of the Frenchmen, were received in a most friendly way by
the Indians, who treated us with roasted ducks and venison.
They furnished us a guide for a small reward, and we resumed
our course without entertaining any further alarm on account
of Indians. The weather was delightful, and we enjoyed our-
selves as well as early travelers ever did. The river afforded
splendid scenery; at times it flowed through large prairies,
that formed a boundless area of fertile country, covered with
luxuriant grass, and on which we frequently saw deer and elk
feeding. Water fowl were abundant, and we could feast on
them at every meal; while the river was swarming with excel-
lent fish, that often formed a delicious addition to our other
fare. There was no difficulty in killing game along that beauti-
ful stream. Hardly an hour of the day passed but we had op-
portunities to shoot deer from the canoes, for it was the latter
part of June, and in the heat of mid-day the animals would
come down to the river, where in the shade of small groves that
lined the river, they found a cool retreat. One of our party,
a diminutive Frenchman, had a long Canadian duck-gun, of
which he never ceased boasting; yet seldom confirmed his
words, by making use of it. The barrel of the gun, indepen-
dent of the stock, was full five feet in length. I had curiosity
to see how it could shoot, and asked the owner to let me try it.
He let me have the gun, and I loaded it with a heavy charge
of powder, and seven slugs or pieces of bar lead, and then laid
it beside me, in readiness for the first good shot.

Many chances offered where it was easy to have killed deer,
but no notice was paid to them, and we continued to paddle
up the river until near noon, when, just as the canoe passed
around a head-land, I observed a noble stag, standing knee deep
in water, on a bar, near the outlet of a small stream. He was
about seven hundred feet from the canoe, with his side toward
us, when I raised the long gun and fired. The deer dropped
without a struggle, and, on hauling him ashore, we found that

2i6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

every slug had struck it Some had entered his glossy side,
one broke a shoulder, another the back-bone. The result of the
shot so pleased the Frenchman, that I really believe money
would have been no inducement for him to part v^ith his gun ;
though I would not have given my short rifle for a dozen such.
While engaged in securing the choicest portions of the veni-
son, our Indian guide told us it was but a short distance to a
larger body of water, on the shore of which lived the great
chief of his tribe, whose name was Muck-ke-tay-pe-nay. This
piece of intelligence made us think we were near the large lake
— Lake Michigan ; but we were disappointed, for late in the af-
ternoon, we entered the foot of Lake Peoria, and were met at
landing by a number of Indians, from whom we learned that
it was more than two hundred miles to the nearest trading post
on the Lake, which was Chi-ca-a-go. We had to remain with
this tribe several days ^before our guide would leave the en-
campment; and during which time I saw several Indians of
other tribes, one of whom was Black Hawk, who, I afterward
found out, was then trying to get these Indians to join the
Winnebagoes against the whites in the !N'orth-West. At length
the councils were concluded, and our guide signified his will-
ing-ness to proceed. Under his direction we paddled along un-
til we came to the Des Plaines river, from which we passed in-
to a large slough or lake, that must have led us into a branch
of the Chicago river, for we followed a stream that brought us
opposite Fort Dearborn.

At this period, Chicago was merely an Indian agency; it
contained about fourteen houses, and not more than 75 or 100
inhabitants at the most. An agent of the American Fur
Company, named Gurdon S. Hubbard, then occupied the
Fort. The staple business seemed to be carried on by Indians,
and run-away soldiers, who hunted ducks and musk-rats in
the marshes. There was a great deal of low land, and mostly
destitute of timber. The principal inhabitants were the agent,
Mr. Hubbard, a Frenchman by the name of Ouilmette,* and

•Antoinb Ouilmette, whose wife was & Pottawattamie woman, is men-
tioned in the treaty at Prairie Du Chien, in 1839, with the Chippewas, Ottawas,
&c. ; and at the treaty of Chicago, September, 1863, provision is made for his

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 217

John B. Beaubien. It never occurred to me then^ that a
large city would be built up there. But great changes have
taken place during the last thirty-three years. I read that the
old log Fort, surrounded with its palisades, was torn down
two years ago, and that Chicago is now one of the largest cities
in the West. Great changes have I seen in my life; I was
mail carrier in the North- West before there was a white settle-
ment between Prairie Du Chien and Fort Snelling — a Govern-
ment express, and volunteer during the Sauk War — ^from
mere love of adventure, have I wandered through the wilder-
ness of the West. I have explored its lakes and rivers in
canoes, boats and on rafts, from Ked Kiver in the !N'orth to
K-ed River in the South, and to JSTew Orleans. I have tra-
versed its woods and prairies, making myself familiar with
Western scenes, the early settlers, and native Indians.

The Indians you now see about town occasionally, all kno\v
me. They seldom come down to the Prairie without stopping
at my house. It was only three or four weeks ago, that seven
Indians came down from Crow Wing. They called on me in
the night, and we had a talk together. They said there was
no game in the neighborhood of their reservation; that they
couldn't work, and so they had come down, and wanted to
know how it would do to go and hunt in Iowa, at the head of
Cedar River. I told them this universal change, that I have
witnessed everywhere, had been going on there also — ^that the
country was filled with settlers, and deer scarce. The poor
fijllows looked sorrowful. It was late when they left my house ;
and though I tried to dissuade them from making the attempt,
they resolved to go and see their old hunting grounds on the
Wisconsin. Many Indians have left their reserve ; and I have
no doubt that they find shelter in the islands of the Missis-
sippi, and in the Kickapoo timber.

The poor Red Man has been robbed, deceived, and driven
from his possession. This I have seen — indeed I have assisted
to drive them from their homes. And yet, no person imder
heaven sympathizes more sincerely with them. They are al-
most extinct — they are passing from the face of the earth 1

2i8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

But I look upon it as a decree of fate. Perhaps there are few
persons more sensible of the beauties of nature than I am, and
yet so little loth to see those pristine charms effaced, the bet-
ter to subserve the advancement of art and civilization.

It is near half a century since I came West, and the changes
that have been rapidly effecting everything, are too numer-
ous for me to describe. The growth of Chicago is one of those
changes. When there in the year 1825, it could boast of an
old log Fort, and a few cabins. What is it now ? You know
best, for I haven't been there these last thirty years, but I know
its inhabitants are numbered at over a hundred thousand; and
where I once paddled in a dug-out, is now erected large blocks
of buildings.

But to go on with my story, we departed from Fort Dear-
bom, in a fishing boat, and proceeded north along the Lake
shore towards Green Bay. We camped on the beach every
night, and finally arrived off Milwaukee Bay, which we en-
tered; and went up Milwaukee River about half a mile above
the mouth of the Monomonee, and landed on the east side of
Milwaukee River, just below Solomon Juneau's Trading
House. I was not acquainted with Mr. Juneau at this time,
though I afterwards became related to him through marriage,
and learned his history. Seven years before, he had been in
the employ of the Hudson Bay Fur Company, in the capacity
of a voyageur, and had visited Prairie Du Chien, where he
found his uncle, my wife's father, who insisted on his leaving the
Company, to whom he was indebted in the sum of three hun-
dred dollars, and loaned him the cash to pay the debt; besides
furnishing him an outfit, with which he commenced trading
with the Monomonee Indians, in the vicinity of Milwaukee.

No. 3

You ask why I don't tell more of the stories connected with
the country, and the adventures of early settlers' life. I could
give you many such, but unless I qualify them to suit the
times, or give them a historical tone, whereby they may fur-

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 219

nish useful information, it would only be of momentary in-
terest, and you could derive) little benefit therefrom. Be-
sides, different individuals, owing to different positions or
interest, seldom look upon the same objects with similar emo-
tions, and were I to relate incidents that have come within
the scope of my personal observation and experience, you pos-
sibly might come in contact with some person, who, viewing
the subject in another way, inight assert that I pervert the
truth and mis-state the facts ; so I will hurry through my brief
history, which I commenced at your oft repeated request; and
as every person gives that coloring to his life which appears
to him most natural, I shall also claim that prerogative; after
which I will furnish you all the early reminiscences that I can
bring to memory.

I have told you how we arrived at Mr. Juneau's trading
house, where the city of Milwaukee is built; but I did not
describe the city, for it was not in existence then, nor even
thought of, neither have I seen the city since it was built.
The log house of Solomon Juneau, standing on a slight ele-
vation back from the river, and a few neighboring cabins, be-
longing to half-breeds and Frenchmen, who had followed his
example by marrying Indian women and settling down, then
formed the only indications of the present city of Milwaukee.
Mr. Juneau was the only merchant Milwaukee could then
boast of, and were I so disposed, I could give a correct inven-
tory of his entire stock contained in the old log house near the
river, as it was not an immense one by any means, and had
been brought down from Green Bay in one Mackinaw boat.
He had settled there first, surrounded by Indians, with whom
he traded, but soon emigration turned in his direction, and he
afterwards found other neighbors, who brought with them the
spirit of enterprise and advancement. The few hardy settlers
who 'first erected their cabins near his,, found him in a wilder-
ness, the primitive state of which had never yet been disturbed
by a white pioneer. South and south-west of Mr. Juneau's
house, could be seen extending large marshes, covered with
tall swamp-grass, rushes and water. The Lake was about two

2 20 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

miles distant, ovoi: the kill to the eastward; and on the west
ran the river, beyond which was a wooded ridge that followed
the river a distance of three miles up to the Rapids, that being
as far as I explored the stream. The landscape has probably
altered, yet an old settler would recognize my description of
Milwaukee's birth-place then in embryo.

I left the neighborhood of Juneau's Settlement in the sum-
mer of 1827. We engaged a passage on one of Juneau's Mack-
inaw boats that were about starting for Green Bay to bring
back goods; as help was not over plenty, he was glad to avail
himself of our services down the Lake until the boats reached
Green Bay, where others were to be engaged in our stead.
It v/as a pleasant morning when the two boats passed out of
Milwaukee River, and entered the broad Bay. The sun was
just rising, and, though I was no sailor, yet I v/as charmed by
the beauty of this inland sea. A fresh breeze commenced blow-
ing from the south-west, and taking in all but the steering oar,
we rigged the leg-o-mutton sails, and were soon wafted in our
swift sailing Mackinaws outside the point. The boats were
loaded with furs, blankets, kettles and provisions and yet their
shape was such that they maintained a degree of buoyancy, for
which they were highly prized by those who used them. I
have used the Mackinaw boat on the Mississippi, and consider
its shape, (pointed at both ends) admirably suited for the pur-
pose of floating a large burden against strong currents.

We would land on the beach at night, and form our encamp-
ment on the white sand, where gathering around the camp-fire
we told our tales of love, hunting and adventure, sung songs,
satisfied our appetites, and smoked, or prepared food for the
next day. This camping on shore was a pleasant pastime. With
no tent save the star-spangled canopy of heaven, we would
wrap ourselves in our blankets on a moon-light evening, and
lying down amid the baggage or on the clean sand, gaze out
on the luSike, where the white caps sparkled in moon beams — or
looking up at the wood-clad bluffs, whose dark outlines stood
in bold relief against the sky, we feasted on the romantic scen-
ery, the mysterious beauty of which, inspired the most practi-

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 221

cal among us with a deep sense of poetic feeling. If I ever
felt poetic, it must have been during one of these night biv-
ouacs, when listening to the beating of the waves on the beach,
mingled with the melancholy notes of some night bird.

Many exciting incidents occurred during the voyage. One
I will give an account of. It was early one morning, shortly
after we had left our previous night's camping place, and got
about half a mile from land, that we observed a number of
wolves on a point, and others swimming in the Lake. Their
howling had attracted our attention, and we were wondering
what possessed them when one of the men remarked, "perhaps
they are after deer." But where were they? This was soon
found out, for some distance ahead of us on the right hand
side, we discovered a large doe, that the brightness of the
morning sun prevented us from seeing before. She was swim-
ming swiftly out to sea, and had evidently seen us, for she
was straining every nerve to increase the distance between her-
self and our boat. [N^ow I had often killed deer in the water,
after having put hounds in the mountains to drive them down,
but never before had I hunted with wolves. Entering into
the spirit of the thing, I examined the priming of my rifle, and
took a station in the bow of the boat, as the men began to pull
for the poor animal. The billows were running pretty high,
but the make of the boats caused them to ride the waves with-
out shipping a spoonful of water.

A Frenchman named Joe King was in the other boat, urging
the men to exert themselves to the utmost, that he might obtain
the first shot. The two boats were about forty fathoms apart,
and the distance between them and the doe, at the start, was
equal. As the excitement of the race increased, the howling of
the disappointed wolves was lost in loud shouts f r'om the men,
who propelled the rival boats through the waves that had in-
creased in size, under the influence of a north east wind. Gain-
ing at every pull, on the struggling animal, we soon came within
easy shooting distance. King now got ready to shoot, but I knew
the unsteadiness of the boat together with the excitement would
cause him to miss. Confident of the result, I was perfectly

222 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

willing lie should have the first shot. So, just as both deer
and boat rose on the crests of the waves, he brought up his
gun and fired. Spang! went the gun, and whiz went the ball,
ricochetting over the water. A clean miss, by thunder! Now
for my turn — and as the boat glided up to the panting animal
I sent a ball through its brain, to the envy of my rival, the
Frenchman, King.

King settled down near Juneau, and became a resident of
Milwaukee. He afterward sold some property that he had ac-
cumulated there, and removed to Eock River, where his family
were living the last I heard from them.

We drew the carcass of the deer into the boat, and as the
wind had increased to a gale, we concluded to run the boats
on shore, and wait until the wind lulled. By skillful manage-
ment the boats were made to ride the breakers, and reached
the beach in safety. The place where they ran the boats ashore,
was near the mouth of two rivers, that flowed intO' the Lake
through an outlet. Here was a handsome broad beach of fine
white sand, behind which blufls rose abruptly; and there be-
ing an abundance of dry drift-wood scattered about, the spot
offered a pleasant encampment. Lifting the baggage out of
the boat, we conveyed it higher up the beach, and deposited it
on the smooth, water-worn pebbles.

The geography of this region being unknown to me, I
therefore resolved to take a survey. Asking King and two
others to accompany me, we ascended the barren Lake bank,
carrying our guns with us. Arriving at the brow after a hard
pull, we enjoyed an uninterrupted view of the Lake. As wp
looked over the vast expanse of water spread out before us,
and strained our eyes along the silent shore, over which hung
so much doubt and uncertainty, we felt curious to see more of
the country. Continuing our exploration along the southern
river, we advanced into a heavily timbered country, princi-
pally pine. 'No timber-stealing lumbermen had then rafted on
the stream, and we take pleasure in believing, that ours, was
the first party of white men who explored the country. We
returned from our excursion into the interior, at sun-set, in sea-

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 223

son to join our comrades in a feast of roast venison, which
made a pleasant change, after living on dried meat and
parched Indian corn.

We were up early in the morning, as was our custom. The
Lake was dark, and agitated, the surf was breaking very heav-
ily on the shore, and unwilling to venture out while the Lake
was so rough, we leisurely prepared and ate our morning meal.
The sun had risen by the time we had finished breakfast, and
as the wind was going down, preparations were made to start;
we were soon embarked and plowing our way towards Green
Bay.

Following along the coast we entered a pleasant bay, near
the mouth of which, were broad bars, on which our men caught
several trout and white fish. I had never seen these species
of the finny tribe before, and the pleasure experienced in de-
vouring the delicious, salmon-like flesh, is needless to describe,
for they now form a dish on tables of every class, who esteem
them a delicacy.

Our camp was on the northern side of the bay, under the
lea of a point. On the bars and in the clear shallow water of
the bay, I remarked several large boulders; they were appa-
rently composed of some rock, extraneous to that generally
found in their vicinity. A query arose in my mind, where
these isolated rocks were formed — how, and why similar in
shape ? I was of an inquiring mind, yet possessed little knowl-
edge of the geological formation of rocks, except what obser-
vation had taught me. The boulders could never have been
formed from earth, rolling down the bank, mixing with the
sand, become hardened by the water, like the round stones that
covered the lake shore — they were of a different texture. It
was long after I had traveled on Lake Superior, that the mys-
tery was solved. When on that Lake, in the neighborhood of
the Pictured Rocks, it occurred to me, that there was a resem-
blance between detached portions of these rocks and those
boulders ; and it resolved itself in my mind, that those foreign
rocks found along the shores of Lake Michigan, had their ori-
gin here ; owing to the action of water, or other natural causes,

2 2 4- Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

in early ages — ^perhaps at the flood — they had been rolled to
the place where I saw them.

"Next morning while the others were loading the boats, I
discovered some fine specimens of sulphurated iron ore in the
Lake bank. Making the men acquainted with my discovery,
I got aboard and we soon doubled the point, and passed out
into the Lake, on our course. At each night's encampment, I
was in the habit of examining the bluffs, and as a general
thing, found that the iron and copper ore was mineralized by
sulphur. If any geological survey has been made of the wes-
tern shore of the Lake, you will find my observations correct,
if you consult it.

Indications of the advanced season, were becoming percep-
tible. Frosts were on the ground each morning an3 the Lake
winds were sharper. Wild geese, brant and ducks were wing-
ing their way towards the South. These unmistakable signs
were not to be disregarded, and we made fewer stoppages, and
urged the boats on their destination. Coasting along the shore,
we passed between the Pottawattamie Island and the main
land, and pulling into Green Bay, took the south-east shore,
and went up as far as S'tui^eon Bay, where we encamped.
Left the camp early next morning, and by sailing and rowing,
we entered Fox River that night, and arrived at Green Bay.

As we came into the village, the inhabitants crowded around
us, with evident curiosity. They were a mixed crowd I can
tell you; they were Indians, and haK-breeds, voyagers, Cana-
dians, French, and to my inexpressible delight there were also
Americans — Yankees among them! In answer to my inquiry,
one of these latter, an American soldier, said there were a
number of Yankees in the settlement — ^that the U. S. Fort
there was garrisoned with them. The commanding officer.
Gen. Cass, gave us a cordial welcome, and accepting his invi-
tation, I accompanied him to his quarters, and under his hos-
pitable roof, I had a night of rest, enjoyment, and refreshing
sleep, that only a person who has camped out, knows how to
appreciate.

I had a view of the Fort Howard, and Green Bay Settle-

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 225

ment next morning, by daylight. Tlie Fort contained a large
garrison of soldiers, mostly rifle companies who had just ar-
rived with General Cass and Col. M'Kenney.* Besides the
garrison, Green Bay had a population of between seven and
eight hundred people, consisting of every nation, from native
Indian to the sable son of Africa ; and amalgamation was not
uncommon either, for all were connected by regular gradation
of shades and color; and you might suppose an inhabitant's
nationality to a fraction — as half-breed, a two-thirds Fox, &c.
Thus you will perceive that society was a little mixed. This
frequent intermarriage had the bad effect to make them indo-
lent, for they evinced neither enterprise nor intelligence. They
gained a livelihood like the Indians, by hunting and fishing, or
were in the employ of a Fur Company that monopolized their
time, and prevented them from engaging in agricultural pur-
suits. And had they time and knowledge, their disposition
would lead them to prefer a pipe and idleness. So it is to the
sturdy enterprise of the white settler alone, that I can attribute
the growth and improvement, that have made themselves mani-
fest in Wisconsin since 1827, at which time emigration began
to pour into the territory.

When at Fort Howard in the year 1827, the Indian affairs
had assumed a threatening aspect. Reports of murders and
disturbances, had spread through the settlements, ^ot a strag-
gler arrived but brous^ht an exaggerated account of Indian dif-
ficulties. Prairie Du Chien, Juneau's Settlement, Chicago,
Galena and Green Bay, were then the only white settlements
in the E'orth-West, and all more or less threatened by Indians,
who infested the country surrounding them. I continued to
hang around the Fort, leading a sort of free ranger life — some-
times accompanying the officers on their hunting tours, but re-
fusing all proposals to enlist.

It was the winter of '27 that the IT. S. Quarter-Master, hav-
ing heard of me through some of the men, with whom I was a

*Gen. Cass was' not the commandant of Fort Howard, as Mr. Fonda sup-
posed ; but was with Col. M'Kennby, on a commission to hold a treaty with
the Chippewas, Monomonee and Winnebago Indians, w'hicn they did in August,
of that year, 1827, at the great Butte Des Morts. L. C. D.

2 26 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

favorite, came to me one day, and asked me if I thought I could
find the way to Chicago? I told him it wasn't long since I
made the trip by the Lake. He said he wanted to get a per-
son who was not afraid to carry dispatches to the military post
at Port Dearborn. I said I had heard that the Indians wcie
still unfriendly, but I was ready to make the attempt. He di-
rected me to make all the preparations necessary, and report
myself at his quarters, at the earliest moment. I now began
to consider the danger to be provided against, which might be
classed under three heads, viz : cold, Indians, and hunger. For
the first it was only needful to supply one's person with good
hunting shirts, flannel and deer-skin leggins, extra moccasins,
and a Mackinaw blanket; these, with a resolute spirit, were
deemed sufficient protection against the severest weather. And
fortunate was he who possessed these. Hunger, except in case
of getting lost, was easily avoided by laying in a pouch of
parched Indian com and jerked venison. Against danger from
Indians, I depended on the following.

No. 4

It was necessary at the time of the Winnebago out-break, in
182Y, for every man — and woman too — to be constantly on
their guard against surprise. Much trouble was apprehended
from the Indian tribes generally, who were jealous at the
encroachment of the emigrants, especially in the region of the
Lead Diggings. Th^ emigrant, settler, hunter and trapper,
never parted with their trusty rifle either night or day. Wea-
pons were an essential part of man^s costume — ^his daily, yes,
his constant companions — ^they were in the hands of the trav-
eler, the homes of the hardy squatter, and had there been any
sanctuaries in the Territory then, I believe they would have
been found in the pulpits. The rifle provided food for the
hunter. It also executed the arbitrary law of the land — self
defense, and its decrees were final. It was during such a state
of affairs, that I had passed my word to carry the mail between

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 227

Port Howard at Green Bay, and Fort Dearborn, commanded
hj Capt. Morgan,* that stood on a point, now forming a part
of the city of Chicago. Although the danger from the Win-
nobagoes had abated, owing to Black Hawk's failing to entice
other tribes into the conspiracy against the whites, and the
Indian War of '27 ended; yet the recent troubles made me
rub up my rifle, and prepare every thing needful to insure the
successful performance of the duty I was about to undertake.
Carrying the mail during the depth of winter, a distance of
two hundred miles, through a trackless wilderness, inhabited
by wild beasts and wilder Eed Men, was attended with no
small danger. It will not be inappropriate, then, to describe
my accoutrements and arms, to be nsed in case of emergoncy.
My dress was a Id hunter, one common to the early period, ami
best suited to my purpose. A smoke-tanned buck-skin hunt-
ing shirt, trimmed leggins of the same material, a wolf-skin
chapeau with the animal's tail still attached; and moccasins of
elk-hide. I must have had the appearance of a perfect Nim-
rod. My arms consisted of a heavy mountaineer's rifle that I
had bought at St. Louis. It was rather long when I got it —
the stock was bound with iron, and carved on it was a cheek
piece and buffalo bull's head, that made it an efficient weapon
in the hands of a strong man, even when not loaded. I, however,
thought it unhandy, and had the barrel shortened, the cheek
piece cut off, and a strap attached to it, so I could sling it
over my back. Suspended by a strap from my shoulder was
a large horn, containing two pounds of powder. Buckled
around my waist over the hunting-shirt, was a belt containing
a sheath knife and two pistols — one of which got lost, the other
I have now — attached to the belt also, was a pouch of mink
skin, wherein I carried my rifle bullets. The foregoing com-
prised my arms and a<Jcoutrements of offence, if we except a
short handled axe, thrust in the waist-belt.

It had been customary for the carrier who preceded me, to
be attended by a party of individuals, who, for any motives

*Capt. WiLLOUGHBY MORGAN, who Subsequently rose to the rank of Colonel,
commanded at Prairie Du Chien. and died there. L, C. D.

228 Wisconsin Flistorical Collections [voi. v

miglit be induced to go witli him. This precedent appeared
to me erroneous, and had no effect in shaping my movements,
for I had concluded that one person could pass through the
country, safer from being intercepted, than a large party; yet
being socially inclined, I chose a companion to go on the
tramp with me. He was a Canadian named Boiseley, and as
he was a comrade with me for many years, and figured in
many incidents on the Mississippi, I will give a brief descrip-
tion of his person and appearance.

Boiseley was short, thick-set, had long arms with big hands
of tremendous grasp attached, and on the whole he was a little
giant in strength. His head was small and covered with coarse,
black hair, and his eyes were small, black, and as piercing as
a rattle-snake's. There was nothing prepossessing in his per-
son, in fact many would think him repulsive ; yet this was the
person I chose to go with me. He had been with me on one
or two hunts, and remarking in him a spirit that was capable
of enduring much fatigue, a sort of intimacy had sprung up
between us, and that prompted me to select him. Having
neither parents nor friends — that I ever heard of — ^he readily
consented to go anywhere with me. I directed him to ex-
change his dress — rags would be the best term — ^for a comfort-
able out-fit, obtained at my expense, and had the satisfaction
of seeing him transformed into a comparatively respectable
looking man. He was aecout^red in a style similar to my-
self. He sported a long Indian gun, and always carried a large
knife, pistol and hatchet in his belt, and bullet-pouch and pow-
der horn hung under his arm. To the horn were tied by sinew
thongs several charms, which he believed possessed some mys-
terious power that preserved him from harm. Aside from this
tinge of superstition I found Boiseley was naturally intelli-
gent and true as steel. During the many long jaunts we had
together, there was only one thing about him I couldn't be
come reconciled to, and that was this : we would start early in
the day, each carrying a pack of equal weight, and after tramp-
ing all day he would go to work and make camp, and prepare
any game we had shot, without showing any evidence of fa-

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 229

ti^e; while I, a man of twice his size and apparent physical
strength, would be so tired, as not to care whether I ate at all.

It was in company with this Boiseley that I presented my-
self before the Quarter Master, and reported ourselves ready
for the start. I have not yet forgot the expression depicted in
the Quarter Master's countenance, when he saw our slender
equipment. It discovered a want of confidence in our ability;
but assuring him that two of us could travel as safe as a regi-
ment, and with greater celerity, my logic prevailed, and he
confirmed me in Uncle Sam's service. He entrusted me with
the — ^not mail-bag, — ^but a tin canister or box of a flat shape,
covered with untanned deer-hide, that contained the dispatches
and letters of the inhabitants. Receiving these and my in-
structions, we departed.

We left Green Bay on foot, cari-ying our arms, blankets and
provisions. We had to pass through a country, as then little
known to white men, depending on our compass and the course
of r-vers to keep the right direction. Taking an Indian trail
that led in a south-easterly direction, we passed through dense
pine woods, cedar swamps, now and then a grove of red oak,
some of which reared their heads heaven-ward, and had for
ages braved the fury of a thousand storms. Erequently would
we disturb a gang of deer that had made their "yard" in the
heavily timbered bottoms. And as we continued to plunge
deeper and deeper into the primeval forest, and to proceed
farther on our course, the tracks of the fisher and mink be-
came more frequent, and occasionally a wild cat would get
its quietus in form of a rifle ball. Once, at night-fall, we en-
camped on a branch of what I now know to have been the
Center Eiver. This stream was a live spring, several yards in
width, and was not frozen over. It made several beautiful
cascades as it flowed over the rocks. Under a projecting bank,
Boiseley found the water perfectly alive with trout, and tak-
ing from his pack the light camp-kettle, he dipped out a mess
of splendid speckled fellows, that relished well after being fried
over the camp-fire. In the evening, after collecting a huge pile
of wood, we heaped the snow up to wind-ward, and in the lee

230 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

of the snow-bank scattered some brandies, on which we spread
our blankets, and laid down with the packs beneath our heads,
to listen to a serenade from the wolves. The night was spent
in smoking, keeping fire, and intervals of sleep.

Leaving the trail at this tributary or branch of Center E.iver
we followed the creek down to the main stream, which ran in a
south-east direction, and then taking a southerly course, we
traveled a distance of twenty miles, and then struck another
river. Following this due east, through a rough, but heavily
timbered country, we arrived at the bank of the Lake, on the
second day after striking the river. It was near sun-down
when we made our camp near the mouth of this stream; and
again within sight of the roaring breakers, a load of uncer-
tainty was tsiken. from me, for with such a guide, there was no
going astray. It was decided that we should keep along the
shore, at least where it could be done without diverging from
a direct lina running north and south ; all head lands and points
we crossed, instead of going around them. The roughness and
difficulty of our track, on account of the icy mauntains formed
by the industry of the breakers and Jack Frost, made it a
"hard road to travel." But trudging along through the snow,
climbing over ledges of ice that in some places extended up
the bank, and plunging through gullies and ravines, we man-
aged to make good head-way. Thus we continued to travel
day after day, though not without variety, either of incidents,
fair or foul weather, scenery — something was always exciting
interest or attention. Oft the winter mornings would appear
beautiful and serene, without a cloud to obscure the rising
sun. Then as we. journeyed would we see flocks of ducks
and sea-fowls sporting in the Lake, amid pieces of ice that
sparkled like crystals; and anon a fisher or otter would glide
off from the ice-fields where it had sought its early meal, to
gain a safe retreat in some crevice of the Lake bank.

It was the 14th day after leaving Green Bay, that I arrived
at Juneau's Settlement on the Milwaukee Kiver, and as I had
a message from Charles Larrabee to Mr. Sol. Juneau, I
was welcomed by him, and remained two days with him to

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 231

rest and recruit I here learned that Joseph King had
returned safe with the goods, but had a hard time getting
back; being caught out in the 'noctial storm, and encountered
rough weather. The Frenchmen he hired at Green Bay, had
already taken Monomonee squaws, and were living in their
own cabins. Mr. Juneau had two children at the time, was
lord paramount of the settlement, and did a good business trad-
ing with the Indians. Boiseley and I left his post to prose-
cute our journey. The river was frozen over, and the ice was
near eight inches thick; taking this we pushed off for two or
three miles, and moving over the frozen marshes, came on the
Lake shore, and crossed a wooded point on the south side of
the Bay; here finding a trail on the Lake bank, we followed it
three days.

On the third day, as we came out on a prairie, we found our-
selves near a number of Indian lodges. We wished to avoid
them, but it was too late now, for the watchful curs of the
Indians had seen us, and commenced a ferocious barking that
soon brought the Indians out in a body. We soon learned
these were all Monomonees, who had maintained friendly feel-
ings towards the whites since the massacre of Chicago.
There was one old chief in the village, who spoke broken Eng-
lifih,_ and could speak French fluently. He had been to De-
troit, and knew much about the white man. He was the most
savage appearing Indian I ever saw ; yet he displayed so much
of dignity and decision in his manner, that I retained the im-
pression that he was a noble Indian. He was a powerfully
built man, about six feet tall, and well dressed for an Indian.
He wore plain moccasins, deer-skin leggins reaching to his
thighs, a calico shirt, a beaded cap with three feathers of the
gray eagle in it, and a green blanket. There were also three
other Indians worthy of notice, but they did not attract my
attention by any peculiarity, so I'll not describe them. As
a whole, these Indians were lazy, and staid in their lodges
starving, rather than go out to hunt, though the country was
teeming with deer, vdld turkies and elk. Our stay with these
Indians was short, inasmuch as they had no provisions; how-

232 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

ever, thej treated us kindly, and directed us to tke best route,
when we left them. Instead of continuing along the Lake, the
old chief advised us to go a little west of south until we ar-
rived at the Des Plaines River, then follow that, and we would
find plenty of game for food, and friendly Indians who would
show us the way to Fort Dearborn.

The land route between Green Bay and Eort Dearborn was
only traveled in the winter season, as then the rivers are frozen
over, and offer no obstruction to traveling in a direct course.
S'o following the Indian's directions, we came to as smooth a
road as I ever wish to see. It was the frozen surface of the
Des Plaines River. This led through wide prairies, and some
large groves. Grouse were to be seen budding on thel trees,
and we killed abundance of them as we passed along. The
grouse, with now and then a fish caught in the shallow rapids,
formed our only food for several days. Until a little north-
west of Chicago, we met with few Indians, all as hungry as
ourselves. But joining a party of thirty Pottawattamies on
their way to the Indian agency, we obtained from them a good
meal of jerked venison and p^arched corn.

One noon we arrived at the southern terminus of our jour-
ney— at Fort Dearborn, after being on the way more than a
month. It was in January, thirty years ago, and with the ex-
ception that the Port was strengthened and garrisoned, there
was no sign of improvement having gone on since my former
visit. This time I was on business, and I advanced up to the
sally port with a sense of my importance, was challenged by the
sentry, and an orderly conducted me to the Adjutant's office,
where I reported myself as the bearer of dispatches for the
commanding officer. Captain Morgan was in the office, and
advancing, intimated that he was that person, and took the
case of letters, directing me to await his further orders. Get-
ing a pass, I went outside the palisades, to a house built on
the half-breed system — partly of logs and partly of boards.
This house was kept by a Mr. Miller, who lived in it with
his family. Here Boiseley and I put up during the time we
were in the settlement.

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 233

I received mj orders from Morgan about the 23d of Janu-
ary, and prepared to return with other letters. We started up
one branch of the Chicago river, and after leaving this we fol-
lowed the Des Plaines, taking pretty much the same way we
had come; meeting with Indians and incidents, all of which
were interesting, but only one of which I'll tell you now.

It happened that after sun-down one day, as the twilight was
coming on, we had arranged our camp for the night in the
edge of a gTove, and the cheerful camp-fire was casting its rays
upon the trunks of the neighboring trees, when Boiseley
seemed attracted by something to a large oak, that stood in the
light of the fire. "What's there, Boiseley?" said I. "Come
and see," said he. "Bear sign, by thunder !" I exclaimed, ap-
proaching the tree that bore marks of having been frequently
climbed by that animal. "He must have been here often, and
not long since, either, judging from the recent scratches."
"Yes," said Boiseley, "but he has not been here to-day, for
the little snow that fell last night is not tracked near the tree."
"Well, that's plain, but why does he climb this tree so much ?"
"To get the honey, of course." "Sure enough." Knowing
now that we had found a bee tree, we naturally wanted a taste
of its contents. Setting to work with our axes, we commenced
hacking around the roots, and the tree being hollow and quite
decayed it soon cracked, tottered, and came down with a crash
across our fire. Luckily our guns and packs were leaning
against a tree a short distance off, and escaped damage. The
tree broke near its top, the smaller part split open by the fall,
disclosing a store of honey that was tempting to us two hun-
gry men. We filled the camp kettle with choice pieces of the
comb, and as Boiseley was preparing a couple of grouse,
(prairie-hens) for supper, I "dipped in" to the honey — slightly.
I have always been blessed with a good appetite, but on that
occasion it must have been a little better than usual, for after
eating my bird, and discussing a fair ration of dried meat and
parched corn, I thought it better to fill the kettle again with
honey, by way of dessert. That evening I got honey enough
for a life-time. The sweet extract of a thousand prairie fiow-

2 34 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

ers passed from sight, but not forever. A strange sensation
seized me, and — were you ever sea-sick? — if you were, it will
be useless for me to describe what that feeling was, .fc.r y.ou
have experienced it. In the morning Boiseley invited me to
join him at the honey pot, but I refused; and pursuiu^g our
journey, we left the rich treat to the wild animals. And since
that memorable night, when we cut down the bee-tree, I have
never tasted honey without a feeling of nausea and disgust.

Stopping a short time at the Juneau Settlement on our way
back, we kept on our course and arrived at Green Bay, the
29th day of February. The Quarter-Master at Fort Howard
expressed himself satisfied with my performance, and he wanted
me to make another trip; but as I had seen the country,
which was all I cared for, I did not desire to repeat it. Get-
ting my pay from the Department, and a liberal donation from
the people, a portion of which I gave Boiseley, I left Uncle
Sam's employ, and took up my old profession — a gentleman
of leisure, and continued to practice as such, until the Spring
came, when with a view to extend the field of my labors, I
made ready to bid good-bye to Green Bay. I had formed as-
sociations and friends among the inhabitants, with whom it was
hard to get. The little Frenchman, with whose extraordinary
long gun I shot the buck in the Illinois river, had married and
was living in a snug little home of his own, where I was ever
a welcome guest. I felt solitary and perhaps gloomy when I
turned my back on the settlement, and embarked in the canoe
wdth Boiseley, for I ^vas doubtful of bettering my condition
by the move. But doubts could not deter me from making the
venture, and wdth determination vre plied our paddles and
urged the canoe up Fox Biver.

The route from Fort Howard to Fort Crawford was not an
unknown one by any means; yet it was through a wilderness
then new, and led through Indian country, inhabited by a
race of men naturally cruel and treacherous, who the year
previous, had begun a war of extermination against the whites.
To us the way was unknown, and we entered on it without
other guides than a few directions from an old voyageur in the

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 2 3 5

employ of the American Fur Company, who had made the
trip. I shall not speak of the incidents that hefell us, nor of
our several camping scenes, just now, but suffice it to say, that
we continued up Fox Kiver into Lake Winnebago; and carry-
ing our canoe across the narrow portage formed by the ridge
that separates the Fox and Wisconsin Kivers, we launched it
in the latter, and were soon gliding down on its swift current,
en route for the Mississippi. Proceeding on our voyage down
the Wisconsin, we descried the beauties of a landscape en-
hanced by the charms of summer verdure. The bluffs that
towered up on either side, as they do now, had never reverbe-
rated the shrill whistle of the locomotive, neither were the
banks sprinkled with promising villages; but nature remained
the same as it had for ages and ages. Now and then could be
seen the wigwams of the W.innebagoes, but habitations of
the white man there were none. The pale faces up to this
time, had not dared to settle on the hunting grounds of the
Bed Men beyond the protecting influence of some fort. The
whole splendid country about ^ladison contained but one white
man, and that was Ebenezer Brigham, who had settled at Blue
Mounds tl. 9 year before I came to Prairie Du Chien.

It was in the summer of 1828, that the canoe came out at
the mouth of the Wisconsin River, and then paddling up the
Mississippi for three miles, we arrived at the village of Prairie
Du Chien at that time limited to the Island over the Sloughy
consisting of the Old Fort, now gone, and the houses of the
people in its neighborhood, some of which are now to be seen.
As a correct description of Prairie Du Chien, its appearance,
its inhabit; -nts, and its position generally, at that time, (30
years ago), Avould be interesting, I will give it to you; at the
same time I will relate all such incidents, and anecdotes con-
nected with the country or its principal inhabitants, as they
may come to mind.

On my arrival at Prairie Du Chien, in June, of 1828
this was no insignificant point in the !N"orth-West. The
eiStaWishment of a military post here by the French, in an
earlier day, which as a natural consequence, caused a host of

236 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

traden, camp-followers, army speculators and a m.ixed class
gener Uy to gather around, made it assume a livelier tone tlian
many A^ould imagine. Prairie Du Ciiien was also an important
point in consequence of the Indian Agency then located here.
Gen. Joseph M. Street,"^ was appointed Indian Agent the
same year I came, and he was engaged in several negotiations
and treaties with different tribes of Indians, among whom he
man,a<::ed to preserve comparatively friendly relations: induc-
ing them to part with their land to the Government, sirip after
strip, for which he saw them paid off in cash or goods. I will
not l>e certain that he always commanded the confidence of
the Indians, but he was impartial in all his dealings with them,
saw the conditions of engagements faithfully fulfilled, and
made the annual payments promptly at the proper time. It
was at these same payments, some of which I attended, that the
traders and employees of the Fur Company reaped rich har-
vests. There are those here now, who made the bulk of their
fortunes, after these payments, in trading with the unsophis-
ticated Indians. This bein^ a point most accessible to a great
many tribes, they frequently received their payments here, at
head quarters. These payments were great occasions — to the
Indian because he would obtain new blankets, and money
wherewith to buy guns, ammunition and whisky — to the trader
for he would rake in all that money, giving in exchange a
very superior quality of goods ; at a very small advance on first
cost — and to the Government, as it offered a chance for pur-
chasing more territory. An Indian payment was invariably
attended with a great jubilee, in most cases got up at the ex-
pense of the Indians. At these frolics the Indians generally
got "plenty drunk," but the traders got all their money, and
the Government got their lands. Gambling was a common
thing at such times, and the Indian often returned to his vil-
lage, ejnpty handed, sans land, sans money, sans everything but
A deep conviction of having been cheated. Thus it will be
plainly seen, that the trade carried on between the Indians and

*A brief sketch of Gen, Street is given in a note, p. 173, of vol. ii. Wis-
■consin Historical Collections.

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 237

whites, was anjtiiing but advantageous to the former, while
many of the dealings of the Government with the Indians,
threatened to embroil the frontier in an Indian war.

Besides the Indian Agency, and being a military post, there
was located here the head-quarters of the American Eur Com-
pany. This Company was organized by John Jacob Astor,
in the year 1809 and if memory serves me right, Joseph Eo-
lette was the principal agent at this place when I ; arrived in
1828; and H. L. Dousman, who had come on the year pre-
vious, was also in the employ of the Company. Of Kolette
I could relate a host of anecdotes, but space and other motives
forbid. I will state, however, that his influence was consid-
erable, his will arbitrary, and his word law. He held sway
over the French inhabitants and voyageurs, which if not really
tyrannical, was exacting in its requirements. At the fire over
the Slough, when the Company's buildings were burned, a pow-
der magazine, filled with powder, stood in close proximity to
the fire. This magazine was in eminent danger from the heat
and flying cinders; and to prevent a terrible explosion, it was
necessary to remove the powder. Rolette taking in everything
at a glance, saw need of immediate action, and thereupon or-
dered all those in his employ, to save the powder. And al-
though it was almost as much as life was worth, they dared not
disobey that mandate, and rushing in they seized the powder
kegs, and carried them through the fire and smoke down to the
river. This incident shows his influence over the people, who
feared him worse than they did death.

The Mississippi E-iver, when I came here, was at a stage of
water 4i/> feet higher than it had been known before, or has
occurred during any subsequent rise. It was in June, and
the site of the village was an island. To this same island,
made so by too high water, was then restricted all that bore
the name of Prairie Du Chien. On the east of the Slough, in
the year 1828, there were only five houses; the one built by
J. H. Lockwood, afterwards occupied by Colonel Z. Taylor,
north of the present Fort; one other where Union Block now

238 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.^

stands ; the house of one Larrivier, and two others that I can-
not correctly locate.

I have said that all Prairie Du Chien was included in what
is now termed the main village. But, at that time there were
many more houses and inhabitants there, than at present. It
is true that the people were chiefly Canadians, Frenchmen and
traders; and their habitations were less prized for architecture
than comfort, yet there was much to admire in the neighborly
sociality that pervaded the early society. The old Fort Craw-
ford was then commanded by Maj. Kearney,* and garrisoned
hj^ the 1st Regiment of U. S. Infantry. Among the soldiers
were many persons, who possessed thorough and even classical
education, whom adventure or some other motive, had enlisted
in. the United States Army. There was a young man of this
class in Fort Crawford named Reneka. He was a favorite
with both the officers aad men. His strict, soldier-like atten-
tion to duty, and courteous bearing, made him many friends
and he bid fair to occupy the highest non-commissioned rani
in the Army. But in an unguarded moment he allowed him-
self to accept the proffered invitation of his comrades, to joir
them in a social glass, and — fell. Unaccustomed to liquor, the
poison soon flew to his brain, and complained of being dreadfu
sick; he immediately left his companions, and started for the
barracks. Entering the sally-port with a firm but excited tread
he passed the sentry on his way to his quarters, from whicl
lie was directly afterwards seen to issue with a rifle. The rifle
was one which he had purchased a short time before, for th(
purpose of hunting, and always kept it in his quarters, read;^
loaded. It is supposed that on reaching his room, the liquo]
he drank had made him crazy, for taking his rifle, he rushec
out into the parade, and raving like a maniac, he whirled the

♦Stephen Watts Keaenby was born in Newark, N. J., August 30, 1794. an(
entered the army as a Lieutenant in March. 1812 ; and was particularly dis
tinguished at the battle of Queenstown Heights, was promoted to Captain ii
1813; Brevet Major in 1823, Major in 1829, Lieut. Colonel in 1833, anc
Colonel in 1836. In 1846, he was made Brigadier General, and commandec
the Army of the West, and conquered New Mexico and California ; in th^
battle of San Pascual he was twice wounded, and brevetted a Major General
From March to June, 1847, he was Governor of California, and died Oct. 31st
1848, at St. Louis, Mo., in consequence of disease contracted while in th(
discharge of his official duties. His character and bearing as an ofllcer wert
unsurpassed. L. C. D.

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 239

heavy rifle around his head. Aroused by the disturbance,
the officer of the day, Lieut. Mackenzie,* came out of his quar-
ters at the further end of the long parade, and calling to
the Corporal of the guard, told him to "Take that lellow to
the guard house.'' Hardly had the order escaped his lips,
when Keneka observed him, and instantly poising his rifle,
ehot Mackenzie throu^' the brain. It was a long shot, but
a deadly one. In making it, Eeneka had killed his bosom
friend. He was arrested «nd confined in the guard-house,
and when he became san. and learned he had killed his
best friend, no words of mine can picture the heart-rending
agony of remorse that seized him. But he was deliv-
ered over to the civil authorities, convicted of murder, and
sentenced to be hung, and brought back here to be executed.
The gallows was erected over the Slough, and the day of exe-
cution arrived. I did not go to see him hung, but it is said
he made an affecting speech to his <jomrades, warning them
against strong drink. He showed up his own case in the
strongest light, and described the grief of his mother when
she should hear of her boy's disgrace. Many an old veteran
shed tears when Reneka was swung off into eternity. But
his was not an isolated instance, where youth, talent, hope —
all were sacrificed to King Alcohol. The army and early his-
tory present a multitude of such victims; even now, none are
exempt from the baneful effects of the curse — every individ-
ual feels, or has felt, personally or socially, its injurious influ-
ence.

Eor some years before 1828-29, little advancement or change
had been going on in the appearance of Prairie Du Chien.
Soon after the Indian difficulties of 1827 were adjusted, emi-
gration increased, and settlers began to arrive bringing with
them seeds of progress. From that period the eastern emi-
grants commenced gathering at this point, the population in-
creased, improvement began and prospered, until we now enjoy
the blessings of the electric telegraph, railroads and reliable

•John Mackenzie was a native of North Carolina, graduated at West Point,
and entered the army in 1819 as Second Lieutenant; promoted to First Lieu*
tenant, November, 1822, and killed as stated in the text, Sept. 26, 1828.

L. C. D.

240 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

steam navigation. The arrival of steam-boats at that early day,
were like angel's visits, ^^few and far between." Well do I
remember in 1828, when the steamboat Ked Rover, com-
manded by Capt. Harris, arrived at this place. It was like the
dawning of a new era, and Capt. Harris is still spared, and
now commands a floating palace on the "Father of Waters."

The principal citizens that resided in the vill^e thirty years
ago, were Mr. J. liolette, his wife and family ; J. H. Lockwood,
merchant trader, and his wife and family; Mr. J. Brisbois,
family of four sons and two daughters ; Hercules L. Dousman ;
Gen. J. M. Street and family; E. Bailey, who built the old
Prairie House; F. Gallanau, F. Chenviet, Flavin Cherrier,
who were wealthy farmers. I may have omitted some others,
but the remainder of the people then here, were mostly traders,
Canadians in the employ of the Fur Company, and those who
lived on the Indian trade.

In the year 1829, Col. Zach. Taylor arrived and took com-
mand of old Fort Crawford. Col. Taylor was a brave man
and a good officer. It was about this time that large bodies of
recruits were coming on, would stop here a few days, and then
continue up or down the river, as they might be ordered. The
army regulations then admitted of enlisting for a term of three
or Ave years. Taking advantage of this, I enlisted in April,
of 1829, for a term of three years, previous to the rescinding
of the article, permitting that term of enlistments Under the
command of Taylor, I was a Corporal, and attained the rank
of Quarter-Master's Sergeant. Having a natural turn for such
things, I had acquired a good knowledge of military tactics,
and being then free from the prevailing habit of drinking liq-
uor, an evil common to the soldier, I, perhaps, (if the truth
is known,) stood high in the estimation of my superior officers.
I said that Taylor was a brave officer, and now repeat it, as-
serting that he was ignorant of fear. On one occasion when
all the soldiers were mustered for "dress parade," Taylor
came sauntering in from his quarters, and running his eye
along the front rank, observed a large, stout German recruit,
out of line. The German was a raw recruit anxious to do his

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 241

duty, but did not understand the English language. So when
the order was given to "dress/' the soldier remained as before.
Col. Taylor remarked this, and thinking it a willful neglect
on the soldier's part, walked up to him and after one or two
trials, got hold of his ears and shook the fellow severely. This
treatment was called "Wooling," a favorite mode of punish-
ment with Taylor, but the German not knowing how to ap-
preciate it, nor why it was inflicted on him, had no sooner got
his head free than drawing back, he struck Taylor a blow
that felled him to the ground like a log. This was mutiny,
and the officers and guard would have cut him down, if Taylor
had not rose up and said, "let that man alone, he will make a
good soldier." And the German was allowed to go back to his
place, and never got punishe^'' for his insubordination; after
he could speak our language, a. xound him an intelligent man,
and an agreeable companion. He afterwards became one of
the most faithful soldiers in the garrison, was promoted, and
served in the Black Hawk War of 1832.

A depredation had been committed by the Fox and Sauk
Indians, on the whites at the Mines. A number of horses
were stolen, and word was received at the Fort, that assistance
from the troops was necessary to recover them. Lieut. Gar-
denier was immediately put in command of a body of soldiers,
and sent down the river to Dubuque, where the Indians were
said to be encamped. I accompanied Lieut, Gardenier* as
pilot of the line. We arrived at the mouth of the Slough,
after dark one night, and encamped. It rained hard all night,
and next day. And though the bluffs where Dubuque is
buried, and all the country was thoroughly searched, yet no
Indians were discovered, and we got neither horses nor glory
on that occasion ; but I got a better knowledge of th.e Mineral
Kegion than I had previous to the expedition. At Dubuque,
the country was rough, wild. and wooded, with few indications
of civilization; and across the Mississippi at Galena, the face

♦John R. B. Gaedenier, a native of New York, entered West Point as a
cadet in 1823 ; was appointed a brevet Second Lieut. July 1, 1828 ; First Lieut.,
1836; Asst. Com. Subsistence and Captain, 1839; and died at Dardanelle
Springs, Arks., June 26, 1850. L. C. D.

242 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

•of the country was rugged and rocky, but the discovery of
mineral had caused an excitement, that brought emigrants
there in swarms, who on their arrival would go to prospecting,
frequently making fortunes, but oftener failing to make any-
thing.

It was during Taylor's command, in the year 1829, that
the present Fort Crawford was commenced. It was known
that I came down the Wisconsin River, and therefore Taylor
chose me to pilot the men up along that river to a given point,
where they were to cut timber for building the Fort. I guided
them as far as where Helena now is. We found such timber
as was needed, and the men commenced cutting down the
trees, and preparing the logs to raft down stream. I returned
to the Fort, having performed the duty allotted me, to the
satisfaction of the commandant. This apparently raised me in
favor, for I was appointed to do much outside duty, and fre-
quently had a file of men under me. Many a time was I sent
out on special duty, which none would have been entrusted
with, but such as could command the implicit confidence of
Old Zack himself. In an early stage of the Fort's erection,
Col. Taylor sent for me, to know where would be the best
place to burn lime. I told him that the stone along the bluff,
to eastward, was of a sandy formation, but I was sufficiently
acquainted with the west side of the river, to know that plenty
of good limestone existed there. He then gave me directions
to take a file of men, and 2:0 over and find a convenient spot
to make a kiln. It was an easy matter to have told of several
with certainty, but it was my motto, to "Obey orders, if you
break owners," so following his directions, I took two men and
started across the Mississippi in a pirogue. This species of
water craft was a dug-out made from the trunk of a mammoth
pine. In the center of this large canoe, was rigged a mast,
with a large square sail. There was no wind, so we had to
propel it with paddles. On reaching the west side, below
where the town of McGregor now is, we turned the dug-out
down stream, and running along the bluff until we reached the
Coulee where old Jack Frost then lived, and there landed.

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 243

ISTear this Coulee, (at tlie present day known as "Lime-stone
Coulee/') we soon found suitable stone in abundance. There
was no difficulty in doing this, for a better quality of stone or
more of it, cannot be found, even at this day, than is in the
bluffs south of McGregor. The place picked out, and we had
nothing more to do, but to return to the Fort.

The men who were with me were both stone-masons, one
was known by the name of Dunbar, a lively, fearless fellow,
ready for any mischief ; the other as Baird, a timid person, who
was afraid of Indians, of dying, drowning — in fact, anything
that had any affinity to danger. It was a warm, sultry day,
and we continued to loiter in the cool shade, 'neath the blu5s,
eonversing, lolling on the grass, occasionally jerking a piece of
rock out on the mirror-like surface of the Mississippi, (that
being the way we worked for Government,) until about four
o'clock in the c^fternoon. I had prophesied a storm that day,
on account of the calm; but my predictions sometimes failed,
and no attention was paid to my remark, until we heard a deep,
distant rum.ble, and Baird jumped up and said, "what's that?"
I knew that it was the coming storm, for lying on the ground,
I heard the thunder distinctly, and looking up, I saw the fleecy
clouds borne on the wind over the'l)luffs ; but, winking at Dun-
bar, he suggested the howling of wolves. This was very prob-
able, for wolves were more common than they are now, and
the wildness of the place gave weight to the idea; but to in-
crease his fright, I attempted to account for the growing dark-
ness and roaring thunder on some volcanic principle. A new
terror seized him, and casting a hasty glance up at the wild,
rugged, precipitous, bluffs, he implored us to hasten back, and
made off in double quick time. It was now time to think of
returning, and going down to the pirogue, found Baird
crouched in the bottom, shivering with fear. We told him to
get in the bow, and trimming the sail, Dunbar took charge of
it, while I sat in the stem to steer. We waited for the storm
to burst upon us. Drops of rain commenced falling, the river
became ruffled, the thunder sounded nearer, at last the storm
•burst with terrific fury. This was our time — ^putting out from
17

244 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

the shelter of the bluff, the "wind struck us, and away went the
pirogue, plowing through the waves, dashing the spray from
its bows, and leaving a foamy wake astern. With the wind
blowing a perfect hurricane, and with the thunder, lightning,
rain and water on a general tear, Dunbar and I were in our
element. But how was it with Baird? Poor fellow! he sat
in the canoe, praying us to take do^Ti the sail, (the pirogue
would have instantly filled had wo done so,) but seeing we did
not answer his prayers, and thinking he was certainly to be
drowned, he appealed to Heaven. One exclamation of his was
"Oh, Lord, if I must die, let the gallows claim its own !" We
laughed at his fear, as he continued to curse, pray, blaspheme,
and finally to threaten us, when Dunbar told him to stop his
noise. This made him cower down, but when the canoe struck
the Government landing, he was standing in the bow, and the
sudden jerk pitched him headlong, a distance of twenty feet
out on shore. He recovered himself, and taking to his heels,
ran to the Fort, never once halting until he was safe in his
quarters. I made my report to Quarter Master Garland,* and
was afterwards sent back with a body of men to make lime;
but poor Baird did not go with us, for he could never be in-
duced to go boating on the Mississippi again.

No. 6

It was in the fall of 1829, while the present Fort Crawford
was building, that Col. Z. Taylor ordered a body of men to
proceed to the pineries on Monomonee Kiver, there to cut logs,
hew square timber, make plank and shingles to be used in the
construction of the Fort and its defences. The number of sol-
diers drafted for the purpose was seventy, besides three officers
and myself. Col. Taylor himself came to me as he had

* John Garland was born in Virginia in 1792 ; entered the army as First
Lieutenant in March, 1813 ; promoted to a Captaincy in 1817, Assistant Quarter-
Master, 1826; brevet Major. 1827; Major, 1836; and Lieut. Colonel in 1839.
During the Mexican war he distinguished himself at Palo Alto, Resaca de la
Palma, Monterey, Contreras, Churubusco, Molina del Rey, and was severely
wounded in the capture of the City of Mexico. He wfts brevetted Brigadier
General in 1848, and the next year made full Colonel. He died in New York
city, June 5th, 1861, aged about 69 years. L. C. D.

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 245

done before, and did afterward — and said lie wanted me to
pilot that expedition. It was late in the season, and I did not
like to bear the responsibility, and told himl so; but Taylor
had more confidence in me than I had in myself, and nothing
would do but I must go. We left here in seven Mackinaw
boats, with ten men in each boat. The officers accompanying
the expedition were Lieut. Gale,* Lieut. Gardenier, Sergt
Melvin, and myself as pilot. Lieut. Gale was the senior offi-
cer, and had command. I was put in command of the ad-
vance boat. Gale in the third boat, Melvin in the fifth, and
Gardenieir in the rear boat, with orders to keep the boats well
up, and see that they reached shore together at night.

The weather was fine for that season of the year, cold nights
and clear frosty mornings. The boats made good headway
against the current, kept together admirably, and the men felt
vigorous under the influence of the pure, bracing atmosphere.
Officers and men were in good spirits, and we passed along
swimmingly until we reached Wa-ba-shaVs Prairie. As we
entered Lake Pepin, floating ice was encountered, the current
was swifter, and the cold intense. E"ow, instead of the men
being in good spirits, good spirits got into the men, and from
that moment we had trouble. Lieut. Gale would get ashore
with his gun and a couple of men, to kill some of the geese
and ducks for our mess, and always left orders for the boats to
keep together. One afternoon, when we had entered the Chip-
pewa Eiver, Gale landed on the north-west shore to shoot
brant geese, that were very plenty, leaving Lieut. Gardenier
in command, with strict orders to keep all the boats together,
and at night to land them in a body, so the men might form
one oamp. This was necessary for the sake of convenience,
and because it kept the men from getting separated, in case the
river should close suddenly. After Gale went ashore, I took
his boat, which was the flag-boat of the expedition, and ap-
pointing one of the men to take temporary command of mine,
continued up the river. Chippewa River is a very crooked

♦Levin Gale, a native of Maryland, entered West Point as a cadet in 1823 ;
brevet Second Lieutenant July 1, 1827 ; and died at Dixon's Ferry, III., Sept
1, 1832. L. C. D.

246 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

stream, and the channel is worse. Often only one or two of
the boats would be in sight, on account of the bends and
abrupt turns in the river. At sun-down we had arrived to
within fifteen miles of the mouth of the Monomonee Kiver, and
only three boats in company. I decided to encamp, and wait
for the other four boats.

Selecting a place on the southeast side of the river, the men
prepared camp, and I sent a skiff to the opposite shore to bring
over Lieut. Gale and one soldier named Earl, who had come
down stream opposite to the camp. Gale saw the other boats
were missing, and sent me down in the skiff to find them and
hurry them up. Some distance below, I met Melvin with two
of the boats. He said Gardenier had run aground on the sand-
bar that I had carefully warned him (Melvin) to look out for.
I had guessed as much, for Gardenier was far behind when
the other boats were warned. The channel near the bar, ran
across the river at right angles with the course of the stream.
Lieut. Gardenier was not aware of this, aad when his boats
struck the bar the men tried to force them over into the deep
water of the channel just above, but this made matters worse,
for the boats were heavily laden with stores, and the quicksand
closing around them, soon made it impossible to move back or
forwards. Between the boats and the shore on either side, the
swift, icy water was too deep to wade, and the only alternative
was to remain where they were until the other boats took them
off. So when I got down to the bar, there they were tight
enough — in more respects than one. It was very cold, and to
keep the blood in circulation, they had tapped two of the
whiskey casks, and were circulating the liquor — every soldier
was allowed a certain amount of whiskey per diem, at that time
called "whisky rations" — ^this article of the soldier's rations
was abolished during Jackson's administration, and coffee and
sugar substituted.

On arriving alongside of the boats, I saw it was useless to
think of getting them off that night, so telling all who could
to tumble into the skiff, I pulled for the shore, and after three
or four trips, had all the men, together with their blankets and

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 247

provisions, safely landed in the Chippewa Bottoms. After the
fires were made, I got into the skiff and rowed back to the
main camp, where Melvin had arrived before me. I reported
to Lieut. Gale, and sitting down regaled myself on roasted
goose. "Next morning we went to Lieut. Gardenier's camp
to enquire into the matter of running the boats aground. A
council was held, and resulted in Lieut. Gardenior's being
sent back. There was an effort to attach the blame on me, but
it fell through. The day following was spent in unloading the
boats, and fruitless attempts to get them off the sand bar. On
the third night the Chippewa River closed, and while the ic©
was getting stronger, we made sleds to draw the stores on the
ice fifteen miles up to the point on the Monomonee River,
where we were to cut timber. By the time the sleds were
made, the ice on the river was strong enough to bear a team,
and the sleds were loaded with casks of whisky, blankets and
provisions, and we drew them up to the proper place on the
Monomonee River, where Gale remained with two men to
watch the stores, while I returned with the men and sleds for
another lot

It seems that soon after I left. Gale discovered a war party
of Chippewas on the path, looking for Sioux, and having a
natural fear of Lidians, he made off through the wooded bot-
toms at the top of his speed. The chief of the party sent a
couple of his swiftest runners to bring Gale back, but they
could not overtake him. The warriors had no idea of dis^
turbing anything, but seeing the liquor and goods lying around
without a guard, they were tempted to help themselves, and
took some of the goods and filled everything they had that was
capable of holding whisky, and then departed. It is seldom
war parties are out after snow has fallen; I have only noticed
it among the Sioux and Chippewas, who were always warring
against each other. I arrived the second day with more goods,
and learned from the two men that Lieut. Gale had been gone
almost sixty hours from camp. I sent men in the direction he
had taken, and discharged guns every moment, and stationed
a look-out on the high ground that commanded an extensive

248 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

view of the Chippewa Elats. The .day passed without our
finding the Lieutenant. On the third day, the oldest chief of
the war-party paid us another visit, returning all the things
they had taken, except the whisky, which they promised to
pay for with venison;

While the party were in the camp, the look-out reported
that he could see some object moving on the marsh, about three
miles distant. Two soldiers were sent out who succeeded in
creeping on Lieut. Gale, and catching him before he could get
away. He had been wandering three days and throe nights,
aiid exposure had deranged his mind, and he did not recog-
nize his friends. He was brought in, and, on examination, I
found his feet and legs were frozen up to the knees. A hole
was cut in the ice, and the Lieutenant's limbs thrust through.
After the frost was out of the frozen parts, they were greased
with melted deer-fat, and wrapped up in blankets. In a few
hours Gale had come to his senses^ — especially that of feel-
ing— aad ordered us to carry him down to Prairie Du Chien.
We made him as comfortable as possible on a sled, and with
three men started to draw himl to the Prairie, leaving Sergeant
Melvin — ^who was my senior, and ranked me — in commaud of
the men. Lieut. Gale endured great pain, for every motion
wa^ torture, but when we came within sight of the Lndian
lodges on Wa-ba-shaw Prairie, he forgot his pain, and wanted
us to avoid meeting the Indians. This would have been a
difficult thing to accomplish, so we marched into the village,
and Wa-ba-shaw came out of his wigwam to welcome us.
Upon learning the condition that Gale was in, the chief had
him carried into his lodge, and treated after the Indian manner
with a concoction of white^oak bark and poultice of roots.
To these remedies Gale owed his perfect recovery, if not his
life. We left Wa-ba-shaw Prairie and arrived safe at Prairie
Du Chien, and the Lieutenant was placed under the care of
Dr. Beaumont.* I was immediately ordered up the river

♦Dr. Wm. Beaumont, a native of Maryland, entered the army fts a Surgeon's
Mate in 1812 ; promoted to Surgeon, resigned and retired from the service
December 21, 1839. He was the author of an interesting work relating to ex-
periments on the gastric juice. L- C. D.

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 249

again, with the three men, and had to drive two yoke of oxen
back. When we arrived at the camp on Monomonee River,
the men had a log cabin most finished, and were drawing the
goods into it.

We had only been there a short time, when one of the men
who was drawing a sled, slipped down and broke his lower
jaw. Sergeant Melvin was a severe disciplinarian and be-
lieved in flogging a soldier for an accident. He ordered the
man to strip and prepare to receive a few lashes. It was bru-
tal to scourge a man who was already suffering with pain, so
I told the man to keep his coat on. The Sergeant glared at
me, but perhaps he discovered something in the expression of
the men's faces, for he kept silent, and the man was put on the
sick list. The men were di-^ided into three gangs, two of
thirty men each, one gang x^ommanded by Melvin, another
by me; and the third gang of ten men, remained in camp. It
was my first duty to build a large flat boat, and having select-
ed a piece of timber suitable for the gun-wales, we erected scaf-
folds and prepared pullies and ropes to raise the log upon
them. This preparation attracted the attention iof Melvin,
and he supposed the men were about to hang him. Fear had
previously caused him to have built a small block-house
in which he had placed aU the arms and ammunition, and
where he now unnecessarily shut himself up. He gave me or-
ders through a loop hole, but would never come out to see if
they were faithfully executed.

The work progressed steadily until the river opened. Trees
had been felled, timber hewn, stuff for the flat-boat got out, and
we had divided the log with whip-saws, and the parts were be-
ing hewed into the proper shape for gun-wales, when one of
the men laid his thigh open to the bone with a broad-axe. It
was necessary that the man should have medical aid, so Mel-
vin made out his report of the work done, also a charge against
me for creating mutiny, and appointed me to carry the docu-
ments and two wounded men — the man who broke his jaw
was unifit for duty — in a dug-out doA\Ti to head-quarters. I
paddled down the river without accident, and entered the

250 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Slougli north of the Fort one evening after dusk, and was sur-
prised to hear the bugles playing the "Dead March." I had
the men put in the Hospital as soon as I landed, and then re-
paired to Maj. Garland's Office, where I found Taylor and
his officers, holding a council. They were deliberating on the
removal of Lieut. MacKinzie's body from the old burying
ground near the mound, where Col. Dousman's dwelling stands,
to the officers' grave-yard north of the new Fort. It was to be
done with the honors of war, and the musicians were practicing
for the occasion, which accounts for the music I heard. I de-
livered the papers to Quarter Master Garland, and after per-
using them in silence, he began to read Melvin's charge
against me in his droll tone, that convulsed all present with
laughter. Garland asked me if we intended to hang the Ser-
geant. I told him we hadn't thought of such a thing, and
then gave a straigh-t-forward account of all that had transpired
from the departure of the seven boats, up to my leaving the
camp on the Monomonee in the dug-out. I was not court-
martialed.

Lieut. Gardenier, Boiseley, myself and seven men, re-
turned to the Pineries to bring down the rafts. We found
on our arrival, that the men had worked well, and had got
out a large quantity of square timber, with any amount of
shingles, and the flat boat was put together and nearly finished.
Two rafts were soon formed of the timber, and I was put in
command of one, and Lieut. Gardenier took the other. My
raft was the largest, but it drew less water, and therefore all
the provisions for the men of both rafts, were placed on it, ex-
cept a barrel of whisky. Melvin was left with some of the
men, to bring down the shingles in the flat boat, as soon as it
was launched.

The rafts were run out of the Monomonee down into Chip-
pewa river smooth enough. One night I made fast to thp
shore, just above the head of Boeuf Slough on the Chippewa,
and was waiting for the other raft. It presently appeared in
sight, and I noticed that something unusual was going on, iar
the raft floated rail-fence fashion, first against one shore and

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 251

then against the other, bumping along as though it was intox-
icated— perhaps that whisky barrel leaked. I cried out to
Gardenier to either make fast above me, or pull for the point
opposite the Slough. He heard me, and tried to make the
opposite shore, but owing to the strong current or some mis-
management, the raft was sucked into the Slough, without
touching, and was carried down some distance, and struck on
a small tow-head or island. I thought it best to wait until
morning before going to them, and quietly ate my supper
which Boiseley had prepared. The principal dish of this
meal, was a hedge-hog that I had shot. It was cooked by
throwing it into the fire whole, and after being perfectly
roasted, taken out and all the quills and hair scraped off, and
the entrails taken out. After it had undergone this process
it looked as nice as any roasted pig I ever saw, and with
proper seasoning, it tasted better.

In the morning, I put some food in Boiseley's canoe, and
went down to the raft. The men were glad to get the grub,
for they had had nothing to eat but the whisky, all night, and
you may believe they were not in the best working order. I
saw how matters stood, and suggested that the raft be "broke,"
and towed out of the Slough piece-meal. Gardenier didn't
approve of the plan, for he said such a large stream of water
must have an out-let somewhere, and he would follow it, and
tal^e his risk of getting safe through to the Mississippi Kiver.

At the entrance of this Slough, the Chippewa Eiver forms
an elbow, the acute angle of which is the mouth of the Slough.
This Slough was indeed a pretty stream of water, wide and
deep, with fine banks, and had I not learned better, I would
probably have made the same error that the Lieutenant did.
I told him, that when we drove the oxen up through the
frozen bottoms, I found where the Slough spread out into a
wide marsh, and that following it up to the Chippewa, we
often came to large piles of drift-wood, that would certainly
stop the raft

It was decided, however, that the raft should go down the
Slough, and orders were given to swing her off the island, and

252 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. t

bidding me good-bye, they were swept down tbe stream. I
went along down tbe Chippewa into Lake Pepin, without see-
ing anything of Gardenier's party, and feeling anxious about
them, for they had been absent four days without provisions, I
got into the canoe with Boiseley, and taking our guns and
something to eat, started to find them. I knew very near where
the raft would bring up, so putting into a Slough that has its
rise in the big marsh, we paddled the little canoe through the
water at a good rate, until unfortunately we run on a sunken
log and were upset. Boiseley seized the guns and carried
them ashore, but all our food and ammunition was damaged or
lost. I turned the canoe right side up, and getting in, we con-
tinued up the Slough, came to the marsh, and as I expected,
found the raft jammed against a pile of drift-wood in the Slough,
some distance above. The raft was deserted of everything
except the whisky barrel, and that was empty. Boiseley said
the men had Been gone from the raft at least two days, and
knowing that they would head off my raft, somewhere below,
we did not try to find them, but started to return to our party.
We had gone back some distance, when passing close to a
small island covered with willows, a band of young Sioux
braves jumped up and gave the war-whoop. The Indians
told us to come to them, and even waded towards us, but pre-
ferring to keep our guns, blankets, and canoe, in our own pos-
session, we paddled away through the islands, and soon got out
of their reach.

In our haste to leave the Indians, we missed our way, and
wandered around in the marsh for two days before we reached
the Mississippi Eiver, far above our raft. We were hungry,
for our provisions gave out two days previous, our guns were
wet, and all the powder spoiled, so we could not shoot any
game for food. Landing on an island in the river, we hauled
the canoe up, and went to sleep without a fire. 'Next morn-
ing the wind blew so, we dared not leave the island. I had
been so long without eating, that I did not care if I ever saw
food again. I had a hot, bitter sensation in my stomach.
Late in the afternoon of that day we saw a canoe, with two

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 253

Indians in it, coming down the western shore. I told Boise-
ley, we must meet that canoe, if we wanted to live. Shoving
the canoe out, we got in, and by paddling and drifting, made
the west shore, where we were picked up by the Monomonee
chief Wa-ba-naw, and his squaw. I asked the chief for
food, and told him how long we had been without. He landed
and made camp, and his squaw cooked some hominy. This
was given to us in very small quantities at first, and no entreaty
or threat could make the Indian increase the dose, until it
suited his pleasure. He continued to feed us at intervals, little
by little, until our appetites became ravenous, and then made
us lie down, and we fell asleep. Wa-ba-naw's squaw roused
us at midnight, and set before us a kettle of thick bouillon
made of hominy and meat, and told us to eat. We eat all the
soup, went to sleep^ and awoke in the morning well as ever.
Old Mrs. Wa-ba-naw, called me her son ever after, and I al-
ways give her a present of snuff, vrhen she comes to see me.
She lives on the island opposite Prairie du Chien, and she
eays she has seen twice fifty years, but that falls short of her
real age. She is blind and lives in a wigwam with her son,
who with anothei* Indian, murdered an old white man, and
was pardoned the same year I came to Prairie Du Chien.
Mother Wa-ba-naw knows many traditions of the country.

Wa-ba-naw went down to the raft with us, from which we
had been gone six days. The men were glad to see us safe,
and getting the raft into the current, we floated doAvn, keeping
a good look out for any signs of Gardenier's party. Second
day after my return to the raft, a signal was discovered on an
island below us. It proved to be the missing party. They
had been absent eleven days, and had eat nothing but acorns
and roots. We treated them according to Wa-ba-naw's di-
rection, for they were most famished, and would have killed
themselves, had they been allowed to eat all their appetite
craved. They took the high land after leaving the raft, and
traveling ahead of us, made a raft of drift-wood that carried
them to the island. The wind broke up their raft, and it was
swept away, making them prisoners -on the island. There they

2 54 Wisconsin Historical Collections ivoi. v

remained without eating, until we took them off. They had
resolved to kill and eat a man, named Austin Young, who
was resigned to his fate, and had gone down to the river for
water, while his comrades loaded a musket and cast lots who
should shoot himL He filled the kettle with water, and was
about to go back, when he saw the raft coming, and told his
companions. Our appearing at that time saved his life.

Putting the weakest of the party into a Mackinaw boat we
had picked up, I sent them down to the Prairie with a couple of
men. The boat must have got down a long time ahead of the
raft, for when we arrived at Paint Rock, I met Lieut. Garde-
nier looking well as ever, and he promised me something
handsome if I would not give the particulars in my report, as
to how the raft was lost. But I knew Taylor hated a liar as
bad as he did a drunkard, so when I arrived at the Fort, I
stated all the facts just as they were ; and it was well I did, for
Col. Taylor would soon have found out the truth. Besides,
I secured the respect of Lieut Gardenier by so doing, for he
was an honorable man. His wife sleeps in the oJ0B.cers' grave
yard, where the slabs that mark the resting place of those who
died at that early day, may now be seen.

The north quarter of the new Port was completed in the
summer of 1830, after I returned from Monomonee River. The
powder magazine, at the south-east comer of the Port, was
built the same year. It took four men ten months (the way wb
worked for Government) to build it The walls are of rock,
three feet thick, and each rock matched into another like
flooring, and cemented together.

In building the Port, we disturbed an Indian mound. It
was a common burying place of the Indians, and we took out
cart-loads of bones.

No. 7

I think it was in the year 1830, that I witnessed a murder
in the garrison of Port Crawford, without being able to pre^
vent it. One CoflSn, a Provost Sergeant,, whose duty it was

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 255

to spy on the men, make arrests and report everything that
occurred, was shot by one Beckett, a soldier. The facte of
the transaction as I recollect them, are these :

Provost Coffin had discovered the soldier Beckett, in the
act of leaving the Fort through one of the windows, from
which a couple of iron bars had been removed. It was one
night after tattoo. Coffin was on the watch, and he caught
the man just as he got out, and kicked, beat and otherwise
injured him, until he was nearly dead, and then had him
dragged to the g-uard-house. The soldier was in a dangerous
condition, and the physician had him put in the Hospital where
he laid sick a long time. He asked and received permission
to go back to his company, as soon as hei was able to be up.
He had ever been a favorite with his comrades, and they all
expressed their joy at his return ; but he replied to their kind
welcome with a strange quiet in his manner, that left an im-
pression of dark foreboding on the minds of his friends. He
continued in a state of morbid taciturnity, in spite of efforts
made to cheer him.

One day, while acting Quarter Master's Sergeant, I was go-
ing out with a file of men to see to butchering some cattle,
when an officer named Green hailed me and said the Pay-
Master was at the Quarter Master's Department and I had bet-
ter go there soon, if I wanted my pay. I then had all the
money I needed, and not being afraid to trust Uncle Sam, I
went on with the men. When I got back, I went into the
Quarter Master's Office to make my report, and found the Pay-
Master gone. The only persons present, was Coffin, who had
a little desk in the office, at which he was writing, and the sol-
dier Beckett who had come in and was standing with his mus-
ket near the stove. I noticed something strange in. Beckett's
appearance, and knowing his disposition, it instantly occurred
to me, that he intended to shoot Coffim, who stood with his
back towards us.

Without speaking, I walked towards Beckett, hoping to
approach near enough to snatch the musket; when designing
my purpose, he warned me off, and quickly shot Coffin-

256 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

cartridge of three buck-shot and a ball passed tbrougli bim,
and be fell dead witbout a groan.

Beckett was arrested, and confined in tbe guard-bouse. He
was ironed witb great care — ^bis bands and feet confined with
irons, an iron collar around bis neck, witb a bar connected,
extending tbrougb tbe shackles of bis bands and feet. He
laid in a stone cell on the floor made of square timber eight-
een inches thick, to which be was confined by a band of iron,
passing over his body and fastened firmly on either side. A
guard was placed over him, but witb all this precaution be
managed to escape.

He got away as far as Cassville, and went to work in tbe
Mines somewhere south of that place, and was found by Capt.
Billy Harris,"^ who was down there hunting for deserters.
He was carried to Mineral Point, tried by the civil authorities,
convicted, brought back here, and hung like a dog. Tbe
sheriff who sent his soul into eternity, barely escaped on a
fleet horse with bis life, for tbe soldiers were enraged at tbe
indignities shown to their unfortunate comrade, and tried to
kill him.

The same year, the Fox and Sauk Indians killed some
Sioux, at the bead of Cedar River in Iowa, Capt. Dick Ma-
sonf started with a number of troops, for the scene of dis-
turbance, and I went along as guide. We arrived at the place
of tbe fight, found everything quiet, and all we did, was to turn
about and go back the way we came.

Soon after tbe Sioux and a number of Monomonees, attacked
a party of Sauks and Foxes, at Prairie Du Pierreaux and
killed some ten Indians, among whom was Kettle, tbe great
Fox chief. t The Sauks and Foxes were coming up to a
treaty unarmed, and tbe Sioux made aware of this, tbrougb their
runners, got the Monomonees and laid in ambush on tbe east

*Capt. Wm. L, Harris, a native of Virginia, was a cadet in 1819 ; brevet
Second Lieut., 1824 ; First Lieut., 1830 ; served in tlie Black Hawk war ; Asst.
Com of Subsistence, 1833; dismissed, Oct.. 1836, and died in Illinois, in P^.
1837. L- C. D.

tRiCHARD B. MASON, a native of Virginia, was a First Lieutenant, 1817;
Captain, 1819 ; served in the Black Hawk war ; Major of Dragoons, 1833 ; Lieu-
tenant Colonel, 1836. and Colonel, 1846. He commanded the forces in Cali-
fornia, and was ex-officio Governor, 1847-48; brevetted Brigadier General, and
died at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., July 25, 1850. L. C. D.

$This was in 1830; See vol. ii Wisconsin Historical Collections, p. 170, 171,

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 257

store. The uiisuspecting Foxes were :fired into from the am-
buscade, and their best warriors lost their scalps.

After the fight the Monomonees and Sioux came up here,
to have a dance over the scalps. The Indians presented u
horrid appearance. They were painted for war, and had
smeared themselves with blood, and carried the fresh scalps
on poles. Some had cut off a head and thrust a stick in the
throttle, and held it on high — ^^some carried a hand, arm, leg or
some other portion of a body, as trophies of their success.
They commenced to dance near the mound over the Slough, but
Col. Taylor soon stopped that by driving them across the
main channel, on to the islands, where they danced until their
own scalps went to grace the wigwams of th© Sauks and
Poxes.

In 1831, I think it was, that I was with a few men getting
out stone near Barretters lower ferry. We lived in a cabin
on the west shore of Wisconsin River. One evening after we
had gone to bed, two of the men who had been to town for
liquor, came rushing into the cabin and told us to get up, for
they said the world was done! We got up, and the awful
grandeur of the sight that we witnessed, I shall never forget.
The air was filled with a meteoric shower of phosphorescent
light. It came down in flakes, and as thick and fast as hail.
It continued for some time, presenting a l>rilliant spectacle,
and giving us a pretty good idea of the judgment day. After
the first surprise passed, I knew it was some natural phenom-
ena, (although I had never before or since heard it accounted
for,) but it appeared strange that the fire did not bum. In
the morning no trace was left of the previous night's wonder.

In April of 1831, I was in the Hospital at Fort Crawford
when through the influence of Col. Taylor and Dr. Beau-
mont, I got my discharge. When I was convalescent, which
was about June, a war party of Sauk and Fox Indians came
up from their part of the country, to the bluff north of Bloody
Run, from where they watched the Monomonees, who were en-
camped on an island, opposite Prairie Du Chien, a little north
of the Old Port. One night the Monomonee camp was sur-

258 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v

prised by the Fox and SauJi war-party, and all in the camp
killed except an Indian boy, who picked np a gun and shot
a Fox brave through the heart, and escaped. After massacr-
ing, scalping, and mutilating the bodies, the Fox Indians got
into canoes and paddled down the river past the Fort, singing
their war song and boasting of their exploits. Soldiers were
sent to punish them, but I believe they failed to catch them.
In the morning I helped to bury those killed. There were
twenty-seven bodies, all killed with the knife and tomahawk,
except the Fox brave shot by the boy. They were buried in
three graves, on the landing below the present Fort Crawford ;
and until within a few, years, the spot was marked by a small
muslin flag, kept standing by the few Monomonees who lin-
gered in this vicinity; but nothing is now left to preserve the
graves from sacrilege, and soon the iron horse will course o'er
the bones of those Red Men, long since gone to their happy
hunting ground.

After the Monomonee massacre, a warrior of that tribe was
found in the old Catholic grave yard, and buried. He had no
wounds, and it is thought that when the Foxes attacked the In-
dians on the island, he got away and ran so fast that he had to
lean against the wall to rest, and that he rolled over and died.

A soldier named Barrette was killed this year by J. P. Hall,
an officer, who struck the man on the head with a pitchfork
handle, and broke his skull. Hall was acquitted, but he never
forgot that murder. I believe Hall lives in Iowa,

I continued in Government employ until the fall of 1831,
when having saved some money, I formed a co-partnership
with a person named Perry, and went to keeping a boarding
house and tavern. I can say that I kept the first tavern in
this town. It was kept in a house we bought of J. H. Lock-
wood, which house is still standing. I continued in the busi-
ness some time, and found it very profitable; but afterwards
sold my interest to Perry, who became involved. A suit arose
about this time between J. H. Lockwood and myself, about
some notes. This suit lasted several years, and was finally de-
cided in my favor.

1867]

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 259

The cholera raged terribly among the troops the year of
1832. One hundred soldiers died at Fort Crawford in two
weeks. They were buried on the prairie south of the old dra-
goon stable; their graves are now open conunon, and the offi-
cers' grave-yard is noit much better, for the fence i;s broken
down, and the graves desecrated. Only four citizens died of
the cholera, and those in one house.

The Indian Agency was removed this year to Yellow River,
and the Rev. Mr. Lowrey appointed Agent. IH was after-
wards removed to Fort Atkinson, Iowa. The mission buildings
can be seen now on Yellow River, about five miles from its
mouth.

The Black Hawk war commenced this year. Some of
Dodge's recruiting officers were drumming around here. I
met and got acquainted with one, named White, and enlisted
during the war. A Quarter Master was up here buying horses.
He purchased near five hundred head, and I went with them
down to the mouth of Rock River, where the army under At-
kinson were encamped.

I was under Dodge's command, which was composed of IlK-
nois Volunteers, and a wilder, more independent set of dare-
devils I never saw. They had a free-and-easy, devil-may-care
appearance about them, that is never seen in the regulars, and
Gen. Dodge of all others, was the officer to lead them. A num-
ber of Sioux, Winnebagoos and some Monomonees joined the
forces on Rock River. I was in the ranks, and my opportuni-
ties for knowing and seeing the movements of the army, from
the encampment on Rock River to the Four Lakes, and to the
Wisconsin bluffs, were limited.

Generals Atkinson, Dodge, Henry and Alexander, lead the
different commands. The force under Dodge, consisted of two
or three hundred men, and we proceeded to the Lakes, through
the swamp towards Black Hawk's camp on Rock River. Gen.
Dodge was impatient to engage the Indians, and urged the
men on; but orders came for our men to proceed to head quar-
ters, where we immediately went

From Gen. Atkinson's camp we were marched to Fort
18

2 6o Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Winnebago, from where we started in pursuit of the Indians
who then held the two Hall girls prisoners, and were camped
at Eock River Rapids. Gens. Henry's and Dodge's men
reached the Rapids, but the Indians had retreated. Informa-
tion was received that the Indians were making westward, and
getting on their trail, we followed them rapidly for two days;
the scouts discovered many Indians on the second day about
camp near the Lake.

The pursuit was renewed on the day aftei^ reaching the
Lakes, where one or more of the Indians was killed. Our men
led the chase, next after the scouts, who were continually jS.ring
at the Indians. The Indians continued to retreat, until they
reached the Wisconsin River, where some made a stand and
showed fight, while the others crossed the river. Here we were
fired on by the Indians, and one man was killed, and several
wounded. We returned their fire with effect, and then charged
them, killing a good many, all of whom were scalped by the
wild Sucker Volunteers.

Soon after the skirmish on Wisconsin bluffs. Gen. Atkinson
came up, and the entire army crossed the river at Pine Bend,
(Helena), and took the trail on the opposite side, and followed
it seven or eight miles^ in the direction of Prairie Du Chien.
When it was discovered that the Indians were making for the
Mississippi, Gen. Atkinson sent me with little Boiseley to carry
a dispatch to Fort Crawford, that the inhabitants might be
ready to prevent the Indians crossing in any canoes or boats
belonging to the citizens. Boiseley and I traveled day and
night, and arrived at the Port without seeing an Indian-
Black Hawk and his people, with the army in pursuit, had
turned northward, intending to ford the Kickapoo high up.

No. 8

It was on the 1st day of August when Boiseley and I reached
the Sugar Loaf, at the south end of the Prairie. As we
were taking a look over the Prairie previous to starting for

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 261

the Fort, we saw the smoke and steam of a boat coming up the
river, just off the mouth of the Wisconsin. We hastened on,
and reached the Fort as the steamer Wcorrior made the Gov-
ernment landing. I reported myself to Captain Loomis, and
was directed to go up the river in the boat. I assisted to get
a six pounder from the Fort on to the Warrior, which cannon
was managed by five other persons and myself, and was the
only cannon fired at the Indians — if not the only one aboard.

The steam-boat Warrior was commanded by Throckmorton,
and Lieut. Kingsbury was aboard with a body of regulars.
The cannon was placed on the forward part of the boat, with-
out a defence of any kind; and I have the names ol tlie five
persons who assisted to manage it, for they got on at the Prai-
rie when I did.

The boat steamed up stream, with all on board anxious to
get a pop at the Indians. Just above where Lansing is, we
picked up a soldier, who had been discharged from Fort Snel-
ling and was coming down in he river in a canoe. He had come
down the west channel, on the Minnesota side opposite Bad
Axe, and, fortunately for him, he did not meet the Indians.
We came in sight of the Indians south of the Bad Axe Kiver ;
they were collected together on a bench of the land close to
the Mississippi, and were making efforts to get their women
across.

Captain Dickson's scouts had not come up yet, and the In-
dians raised a white flag and endeavored to induce the boat to
approach the east shore, and succeeded in bringing her dose
enough to pour a shower of balls into her. The cannon sent a
shower of canister amongst the Indians, which was repeated
three times, each time mowing a swath clean througH them.
After discharging the gun three times., (there were only three
charges of canister-shot aboard,) the Indians retreated to the
low ground back from the shore, where, lying on their bellies,
they were safe from us.

A continual firing of small arms was kept up between the
persons on board the boat and the Indians ashore, until the
fire-wood gave out, when we were obliged to put back to Prai-

262 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

rie Du Chien to wood-up — for there were no wood-yards on the
Mississippi as now. The village was roused to carry wood
aboard, and we soon had a sufficient quantity of that article.
A lot of Monomonee Indians were also taken on, and then,
under a full head of steam, we put back to the secene of the
battle.

Before we rounded the island, and got within sight of the
battle-ground, we could hear the report of musketry, and then
it was that I heard Throckmorton say : ^ 'Dodge is giving them
h — ^11 !'' And he guessed right, for as we reached the scene of
action, the wild volunteers under Gen. Dodge were engaged in
a fierce conflict with the Indians. The Indians were driven
down to the river edge; some of them under shelter of the
bank, were firing at the volunteers, who had command of the
bluffs. The Suckers and Hoosiers, as we called them, fought
like perfect tigers, and carried everything before them.

The troops and Indians on board the Warrior, kept up a
brisk fire on the Indians ashore, who fought with a desperation
that surpassed everything I ever saw, during an Indian fight,
and I have seen more than one. The Indians were between
two fires ; on the bluffs above them were Dickson and his rangers,
and Dodge leading on his men, who needed no urging; while
we kept steaming back and forth on the river, running down
those who attempted to cross, and shooting at the Indians on
shore.

The soldier we picked up, helped to man the gun, and dur-
ing the engagement, he was wounded in the knee by a rifle-
ball. The Indians' shots would hit the water or patter against
the boat, but occasionally a rifle-ball sent with more force,
would whistle through both sides. Some of the Indians, naked
to the breech-cloth, slid down into the water, where they laid,
with only their mouth and nostrils above the surface; but
by running the boat closer in to the east shore, our Monomo-
nees were enabled to make the water too hot for them. One
after another, they jumped up, and were shot down in attempt-
ing to gain cover on the bank above. One warrior, more brave
than the others, or perhaps more accustomed to the smell of

1867J Reminiscences of Wisconsin 263

gun powder, kept his position in the water until the balls fell
around him like hail, when he also concluded to pugh-a shee*
and commenced to creep up the bank. But, he never reached
the top, for Throckmorton had his eye on him, an3 drawing
up his heavy rifle he sent a bullet through the ribs of the In-
dian, who sprung into the air with an ugh! — and fell dead.
There was only one person killed of those who came up on
the Warrior^ and that was an Indian. The pilot was fired at
many times, but escaped unharmed, though the pilot-house waa
riddled with balls.

One incident occurred during the battle that came under my
C'bservation, which I must not omit to relate. An old Indian
brave and his five sons, all of whom I had seen on the Prairie
and knew, had taken a stand behind a prostrate log, in a little
ravine mid-way up the blufi; from whence they fired on the
regulars with deadly aim. The old man loaded the guns as
fast as his sons discharged them, and at e'ach shot a man fell.
They knew they could not expect quarter, and they sold their
lives as dear as possible; making the best show of fight, and
held their ground the firmest of any of the Indians. But,
they could never withstand the men under Dodge, for as the
volunteers poured over the blufi, they each shot a man, and in
return, each of the braves w^as shot down and scalped by the
wild volunteers, who out with their knives and cutting two
parallel gashes down their backs, would strip the skin from
the quivering flesh, to make razor straps of. In this manner I
saw the old brave and his ^ve sons treated, and afterward had
a piece of their hide.

After the Indians had been completely routed on the east
side, we carried Col. Taylor and his force across the river, to
islands opposite, which we raked with grape and round shot.
Taylor and his men charged through the islands tcJ the right
and left, but they only took a few prisoners; mostly women
and children. I landed with the troops, and was moving along
the shore to the north, when a little Indian boy, with one of

♦ Puck-a-shee — 6e off — escape — is quite a common word with several of the
Western Indian tribes. The Shawftnoes used it. L. C. D.

264 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

his arms shot most off, came out of the hushes aud made signs
for something to eat. He seemed perfectly indifferent to pain,
and only sensible of hunger, for when I carried the little naked
fellow aboard, some one gave him a piece of hard bread, and he

stood and ate it, with the wounded arm dangling by the 1o^
flesh; ani so he remained until the arm was taken off.

Old Wa-ba-shaw with a band of his warriors and the Mo-
nomonees, were sent in pursuit of those of Black Hawk's peo-
ple who crossed the Mississippi, and very few of the Sauk and
Fox Indians ever reached their own country. The Warrior
carried down to the Prairie, after the fight, the regular troops,
wounded men and prisoners ; among the latter was an old Sauk
Indian, who attempted to destroy himself, by pounding his
own head with a rock, much to the amusement of the soldiers.

Soon after Black Hawk was captured, the volunteers were
discharged, and I received a land warrant for my two months
service, settled down and got married.

When Taintor and Reed came here and took contracts to
furnish the Fort with wood, which, was soon after the close of
the Black Hawk war, when they were showing Black Hawk
around the country, I moved up on the bluff, and went into
the employ of Beed. The wood was furnished at a high price,
and the contractors made a good profit from it I remained on
the bluff some time; finally Beed went away, and I returned
to the Prairie. Uncle Ezekiel Taintor afterwards commenced
to keep a store on the Prairie, but the business not suiting him
he discontinued it, and returned to his farm, where he now
lives, a respected and well-to-do citizen of Crawford.

In the year 1834, I think it was, I moved back to the Prai-
rie into the old tavern. That year the small pox broke out
in the village; many citizens were attacked with the disease,
and hundreds of the Indians then living in this vicinity died.
My oldest son, then nine months old, was seized with the dis-
ease, and recovered ; but a Winnebago, whom we called TBoxer,
and who acted as my clerk and sold liquor to the Indians,
caught the loathsome disease, and died. I will relate the man-
ner of his death, for he was a faithful fellow, and though he

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 265

took in a hundred dollars a day sometimes, lie never defrauded
me of a cent. I was about to move to Bloody Run, and had
sent Boxer over to see if the shanty was ready, and he took
his canoe and went over. It seems on his way back he felt
sick, and drew his canoe up on the point of the island, east of
the Bun, where the fever came on, and he laid down by the
water's edge to drink, and there he died. There I found him
as I was going over to the Run. I buried him on the island,
and can show you his grave, and say, there lie the bones of an
honest Indian. I proceeded to Bloody Run after burying poor
Boxer, and was there taken with the small pox myself. I laid
down by a spring, and remained there during the attack, four
days and four nights, which time was passed in great misery,
and seemed an age to me, but after the crisis passed, I was
enabled to reach the Prairie, where I soon regained my health,
and then moved my family to Bloody Run.

In Bloody Run I lived about two years. When I first went
over there the cabin we moved into leaked, and one day I was
on the roof fijxing it, when I saw a deer coming down the cou-
lee, from the north, directly towards me. I thought it was
chased by something, and not being entirely recovered from my
sickness, I did not get down to harm it Soon after the deer
passed I was attracted by an exclamation from my son, and
looking, I discovered a large gray wolf making towards him. I
got down quickly, and snatching up a gun loaded with small
shot, that my wife had been hunting with, I i^dvanced towards
the wolf, but it did not retreat until I sent a charge of shot into
its face.

Bloody Run was a great hunting ground, and Martin Scott,*'
of whom I know many interesting anecdotes, made it his fa-
vorite beat, when in pursuit of game. From this circumstance
it is said the Run derived its name, but that is an -error, for
the true origin of Bloody Run, is known to some old settlers
now alive, and is as follows:

• See vol. il, p. 119, Wis. Hist Collections, for a notice of Col. Scott. L. C D.

2 66 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

No. 9

Bloody Eun is so called, from an incident of backwoods'
life, which I will relate as it was told me, by a person who
was bom in these parts, and who is now living in Prairie Du
Chien. The name applies to a large ravine or valley, on the
west side of the Mississippi, in Iowa, opposite Prairie Du
Chien, and one mile north of McGregor. A stream of pure,
cool spring water, clear as a crystal, and thickly skirted with a
growth of timber, meanders along through the valley, over its
pebbly bottom towards the Mississippi, into which it flows.
This stream winds between high wood-covered bluffs that bound
the valley on either side ; and at a distance of more than seven
miles from its mouth, it furnishes power to run Spalding &
Marsh's mill.

In that season of the year when vegetation and verdure are
at their height, a picturesque sight is presented to the tourist,
as he winds his way along the stream through the valley of
Bloody Run. The lover of nature has never imagined a wilder,
more beautiful place than was Bloody Run, when I was there
in 1834. 'No wonder that Martin Scott chose this as his fa-
orite hunting-ground. His true sportsman instinct led him to
this place, to watch for the red deer as it came down from the
bluff at mid-day, to slake its thirst, and cool its panting sides
in the crystal waters of the Run. Here it was, his brag gun
dealt death among the wood-cock, wood-duck and pheasants,
that were very abundant in the valley; and here, too, trans-
pired a scene of blood-shed that gave to this beautiful spot its
ominous name.

There is scarcely a stream, point, bluff, wood, coulee or cave
in the West, but has attached to it some associations that are
alone peculiarly historical; and as I possessed a natural curi-
osity to learn the derivation of names that to me seemed pecul-
iar, my probings have often brought to light, mines of legendary
lore and antique history.

It was years ago before the English were guided to and cap-
tured Prairie Du Chien, and before the traitorous guide hid

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 267

himself in a cave in Mill Coulee— when Prairie Du Chien was
inhabited by only a few French families and Indian traders,
that an event occurred which gave to the Coulee, wherein
I^orth McGregor is now being built, the name of Bloody Run.
A couple of traders lived on the Prairie, named Antoine
Brisbois and George Fisher, and as was the custom with
those extensively engaged in the fur trade, these two traders
had their clerks or agents, who they supplied with goods to
dispose of to the Indians. Among other clerks, were two who
lived with their families in Bloody Run. Their names were
Smith Stock and a Mr. King. King's wife was a squaw
from the Sauk tribe, while Mr. Stock and wife were English,
and both families lived on a little bench or table land, about a
mile and a half from the mouth, on the north side of the val-
ley. Their cabin was situated a few rods west of the log house
now standing, and I can show you the stones of the old fash-
ioned fire-place, lying where they fell after the cabin went to
decay.

The clerks had sold a quantity of goods to the Indians on
credit, who were backward in canceling the debt. Among
other Indians who had got in debt for goods, was a Sauk chief,
Gray Eagle.* The chief had been refused any more credit,
and would not pay for what he had already obtained. This
dishonesty on the part of the chief made King impatient, and
he told his wife that he would go to Gray Eagle's village, and
if the chief did not pay, then he would take the chief's horse
for the debt. His wife told him it would be dangerous to treat
a chief that way, and warned him not to go; but he said he
had traded too long with the Indians to be afraid of them, and
started to collect the debt.

On his way to the village he met the chief, unarmed, riding
on the very horse he had threatened to take. Approaching
him, he dragged the chief off, gave him a beating, and got on

♦We have no further certain information of this chief.

Me-ca-itch, or the Eagle, a Sauk chief of Missouri, signed the treaty of 1815.

Mau-que-tee, or the Bald Eagle, a Fox chief, signed the treaty at Rock Island,
In 1832.

Pe-a-chin-a-car-mack, or Black-Headed Eagle, father and son, signed the
treaty with the Sauks and Foxes in 1836 ; and the same year Pe-a-chin-wa. a
Sauk chief, signed the treaty of Dubuque, with Gen. Dodge. L. C. D.

2 68 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

the horee himself and rode it home, and tied it before the
shanty door. When he told his wife what he had done, she
said she was afraid the chief would seek revenge, and warned
her husband to be cautious. Soon after Mrs. King rushed
into the cabin and said that Gray Eagle was near at hand
with some of his people. Upon hearing this. King arose to
go out to the horse, but he scarcely reached the door before a
bullet from Gray Eagle's rifle pierced his brain, and he fell
across the thresh-hold a bloody corpse. The Indian took the
horse.

Mr. Stock, the remaining trader, persisted in his refusals to
give the Indians credit, which so enraged them, that they shot
him through the heart. After this last tragedy, the surviving
members of those two families removed from the old claim,
and for years after no white man lived in the valley, which,
from the murders perpetrated there by the Indians, has ever
since been called Bloody Bun,

Such is a description and history of the place where I went
to live twenty-four years ago; and it remained about the same
imtil within two or three years. I lived there two years and
raised two good crops, and spent the pleasantest two years of
my life. The Indians were very numerous, their reservations
being close by, and they sometimes stole my corn and potatoes,
and killed my hogs; but I should have continued there had
the title to the land been good. But an advantageous offer
was made to me to go up into the Monomonee Pineries, and
I left Bloody Kun.

Within the last twelve months. Bloody Run has undergone
a great change. The land titles have been investigated and
adjusted; the floating population of the West has begun to
settle there; mills have been built; dwellings erected, and a
rail-road is surveyed through the valley, and partly built. A
young city is rearing itself in the valley ; and will yet surpass
its neighbor (McGregor), in population and trade, as it does
now in its natural advantages.

1867J Reminiscences of Wisconsin 269

No. 10

It was in 1839, while in the Monomonee Pineries, that
desirous of returning to Prairie Du Chien, I looked around
for the means of doing so. I pitched upon a plan that few
would think of in this age oi progress, when a very few hours
suffice to perform the journey, that then occupied as many
days. But there was no conveniences of travel on the Upper
Mississippi then; a passage in a high-pressure steamboat, such
as was the Science^ could not be counted on with any certainty.
I got a large Mackinaw boat, rigged an awning, and placed
my family an J. what few worldly goods I possessed in it, and
made the trip from the mills on Monomonee Eiver' to the
Prairie.

We had a pleasant trip, calling and floating down the river;
and were I to give a minute sketch of it, you might think it
interesting; but as I am anxious to give an account of things
in general rather than a personal history, I will merely notice
one incident of our journey, which occurred before our safe
arrival at Prairie Du Chien.

Our boat was thirty feet in length and the awning extended
over a space of fifteen feet in the centre, beneath which was
placed our goods, provisions and bedding, at the same time
affording shelter for my wife and children, from the rain and
night damps. In the stem I had reserved a space to work the
steering oar, while in the bow was a stove where my wife
cooked our food and such game as I shot. With all the
exposure of that trip, I look back at the time thus spent as
among the pleasantest of my life.

One day while the boat was floating lazily down with the
current, opposite Trempealeau Mountain, my attention was
called to an animal, pointed out by my wife. It was on a long,
narrow bar or point of an island just below us, and appeared
to be playing with some object, unconscious of our approach.
1 was not long in discovering that it was a large panther, and
made up my mind to shoot it, for at that time I had never
killed one. So telling my wife to take the oar and direct the

270 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

boat to a point nearest the beast, I stood in the bow ready to
fire as soon as we bad approached near enough. The panther
kept dragging the object about, unmindful of the boat, until
its keel grated on the sand within twenty feet of it. Just as
the boat stopped, I fired. The bullet pierced its vitals, and
after satisfying myself that it was dead, got out to skin it,
when I found that one of the panther's paws was firmly locked
in the jaws of a large, hard-shell turtle. It appeared to me
that the panther had been in search of food, and spying the
turtle, crept up to it, with the intent to catch it, and he did
catch it) he "caught a tartar." The turtle got a paw in his
mouth, and kept hold so firmly that the panther was unable
to extricate it. I am of the opinion that the panther knew
he had "put his foot in it," and out of respect to his unfortu-
nate condition, I never boasted the exploit of killing biro.
The skin of the panther was not worth a sovrmarhee, but the
turtle was a prize I knew how to manage, for I was something
of an epicure. The turtle furnished us with many a delicious
feast, until we reached the Prairie.

I found on arriving at Prairie Du Chien that the speculating
mania had come to a crisis, and "hard times" had put a
damper on the spirits of the people, as well as put a stop to all
enterprises. Real estate was still held at high rates, but it did
not change owners as frequently as in 1836. The state of
affairs was similar to that of 1858.

In the year 1824, one cow would buy a small farm. As an
instance, showing how cheap land could be bought then, I
will cite a fact that occurred to me. A certain person owed
me a bill of ^yg dollars, and not having the money, he came
to me and offered to deed a piece of property to me to pay the
debt. Low as such property was, taxes were very heavy, and
so I would not accept the offer. B. W. Brisbois afterwards
paid eight hundred dollars for the lot, and now it is not to be
had at any price.

The Territorial Government of Wisconsin was established
when I had returned in 1839, and I believe that I sat on the
jury when the first criminal case was tried under the Territo-

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 271

rial law of Wisconsin. As no harm can be done, I will give a
brief history of this case, to show how such things were
then managed. Judge Dunn was presiding at that time,
and Ezekiel Taintor, who summoned me, was acting Sher-
iff. The defendant was a Dacotah Indian, charged with the
crime of murdering a young man named Akins, whose father
was prosecuting. From the evidence it appeared that Akins
the senior, was a trader at the head of the Mississippi, where
he had a trading house. Young Akins attended to the trad-
ing-house department, while his father who resided in a house
some distance off, furnished the goods and capital. In his in-
tercourse with the Indian, the son had seen a remarkable hand-
some young squaw, and taken some kind of liking for her.
The squaw was the wife of a young brave. By means of num-
erous presents, Akins persuaded the squaw to desert her hus-
band, and live with him in the trading house. When the In-
dian came for his squaw, Akins locked the doors and refused
to let her go. The Indian went away, but returned the next
evening about dusk, and walked into the house where Akins
was sitting, and again asked for his squaw. Akins refused to
let her go, and the Indian shot him dead on the spot. The
father of young Akins had the Indian brought down here for
trial.

The case was conducted with very few formalities; and
whenever the court took a recess, the jury were locked up in a
grocery^ where for the sum of 75 cents each, we could have all
the liquor we wanted, provided we did not waste or carry any
away. JSTow imbibing was quite prevalent among all classes,
in that day, and if each of the jurymen drank his T5 cents
worth in one night, the Judge and Counselors could not have
been far behind in that lespect; and some individual was
heard to say, that the prisoner was the only sober man in the
court room. After the jury were charged, we were locked up
two days and three nights — ^I generally got out and went home
nights, but came into court in the morning; and on the third
morning we brought in a verdict of "not guilty/' and the In-
dian was discharged.

272 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

If there were any irregularities in the administration of jus-
tice, after the Territory of Wisconsin was organized, tliere
were many more under the Michigan Territorial Government. I
remember that soon after I came to Prairie Du Chien, Joseph
Rolette was Chief Justice, I forget who his associates were,
and it was rich to watch the proceedings and decisions of the
court. Joseph M. Street, H. L. Dousman, and M. Brisbois
were afteirwards appointed to the offices of Chief Justice and
Associate Judges, and a decided improvement was introduced
in the manner of conducting the court. Severally, the Asso-
ciates had the powers of a Justice of the Peace; they could
marry persons, issue warrants for arrest, &c, but it was only
collectively that they had original jurisdiction in civil and
criminal natters.

Prom 1840 until the commencement of the war with Mexi-
co, nothing to excite interest occurred; unless we remark that
the country was rapidly filling up with new comers. In 1846
orders were received to raise a volunteer company of one hun-
dred men.

When I left Bloody Run to go up to Lockwood's mill on
the Monomonee, in 1836 or ^37, great speculative excitement
existed. Land Compames !N"os. 1 and 2 were formed, and great
improvements and projects were commenced. At Prairie Du
Chien and Cassville, towns were laid out, hotels built, and real
estate was held at enormous prices. It was designed to make
Cassville the Capital of the Michigan Territory; but mens'
practice always falls short of their theory. The hard times
came on, and the much talked of project was abandoned ; land
depreciated, and a general stagnation of business ensued.
Among the organizations of the times was a wild-cat banking
institution, entitled the "Prairie Du Chien Ferry Company.''
This Company issued its shin-plasters at Prairie Du Chien;
some of which I have, and they bear the signatures of G. Wash-
ington Pine, President; and H. W. Savage, Cashier. This
pioneer bank, however, had to succumb to the pressure, and
adopted the "suspend payment" system, which suspension
has lasted to the present day.

1867

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 273

The Eev. Alfred Brunson, and quite a number of persons,
some now living in Curt's settlement, came here the year I
went to the mills on Monomonee E-iver. I went to Lake Pepin
with my family in the steamboat Science, At the Lake were
two trading houses. Immediately upon our arrival at the
Lake, a fierce battle was fought on its shores, between the
Sioux and Chippewas, which resulted in the defeat of the lat-
ter. I passed the scene of the fight, and saw the mutilated
bodies of the dead Indians. iThe Chippewa Indians were bet-
ter warriors than the Sioux, but being poor, their armfi are
almost valueless, which accounts for their defeat. From the
Lake we went up the Chippewa Eiver in Mackinaw boats.
The water of the Chippewa is as red as wine, and a crimson
streak may be seen for some distanc below its mouth. This
color I attribute to deposits of iron-ore through which the
channel of the river runs. On reaching the mills, (there being
three of them,) I entered upon my duties as a lumberman.
The mills were situated on the Monomonee Eiver, in a tract of
neutral ground between the Chippewa and Sioux Indians.
These two tribes were constantly warring against each other,
and I had frequent opportunities to see war parties of both
tribes. There were some Chippewas living near the mills, w£o
sold game, maple sugar, wild fruits and such like articles to
the mill hands.

On one occasion the hands had gone to work, and left their
cabin locked up, when a number of Chippewas came in their
absence, crept through a window, stole the blankets from the
beds, pork from the barrel, filled their blankets with flour, and
started away with all their plunder. Fortunately, the mill
hands discovered their loss early. They pursued the Indians,
overtook them, gave them a good whipping, and took away
everything that had been stolen. It was with such' incidents
as these, that we relieved the monotony of life in the Pinery.

One day my wife was alone in our cabin, when an old
Ohippewa who had often visited us, came in with some maple
sugar. My wife took the sugar, and in return gave him some
pork and flour, at the same time telling him she thought there

2 74 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

were Sioux Indians near, for that day she smelled hinnikinnich
smoke in the woods. The Chippewa soon left, and it seemed
not more than a moment after that the house was filled with a
war party of Sioux. The chief asked her if there was any
Chippewas there, and she answered that she had not seen any.
The Sioux said they had tracked one to the cabin, and taking
some of the sugar the Indian had brought, called it "Chip-
pewa's sugar," and said they would eat the sugar, and cut the
Chippewa's throat when they caught him. The war party ate
all the food they could get, and then filed out ; but tliey didn't
catch the old Indian, for he managed to escape, and afterwards
brought game to our house.

There is something mysterious in the appearance of a war
party. I have seen several, and they glided along like a ser-
pent, with noiseless, even motion; and had I not been looking
at them, I should not have known that they were passing with-
in thirty feet of me. Once a raft broke to pieces, and I went
with the men to recover the lumber. While engaged in col-
lecting it, we had to pass ovei^ a ridge frequently during the
day, and at night when we were going over on our way b^^ck
to the mills, we heard a laugh close by our side. We looked
around for the cause, but not finding it, we were about to move
ODj when the laugh was repeated, and we were surprised to see
what we had taken for a pine stump, assume the form of a
Chippewa scout. It appears he had been hid there all day,
watching for Sioux, and we had passed within arms' reach sev-
eral times, without seeing him.

I remained two years in the Pineries and could have made
money, had I accepted the offer made me if I would remain
longer; but I desired to return to Prairie Du Chien.

No. 1 1

The year after my coming down from Lockwood's Mills^
in 1840, an election occurred, and I was solicited to accept
the office of Constable in and for the county of Craw-

1867

Reminiscences of Wisconsin 275

ford, and Territory of Wisconsin On th*^ 28th of September,

1840, I was duly elected, and on the 19th day of October, was
qualified before C. J. Learned, to perform the duties of the
office. The business of Constable here, eighteen years ago,
was not very considerable, yet there was a kind of character
attached to the office in that day, which made its occupant a
person of note and dread, in the eyes of the then unsophisti-
cated inhabitants of this vicinity. Well do I remember the
first writ I served ; the trepidation that took hold of the person
against whom it was issued, when I came into' his presence.
But he has got bravely over that, and is at this time, one of
the first citizens of Prairie Du Chien, under obligation to no
man.

Ezekiel Taintor was elected Sheriff of Crawford County,
about 1840; at all events., he occupied that office in the year

1841. This point was then the place for holding all criminal
trials, for the entire country north-west of it. Some very noted
lawyers of those times, were located here; among these was
T. P. Burnett, a thorough read lawyer, and a gentleman of
respectability. His public services will long be remembered
by the citizens of Wisconsin. He died in 1846, leaving a
vacant seat in the Territorial Legislature, and a large circle of
friends.

In the year 1841, J. Rolette, the first citizen of Prairie Du
Chien, died, and was buried in the Catholic grave-yard. Four
years previous, Michael Brisbois, an old fur-trader, and citi-
zen, died, and was buried on the summit of a high bluff, in
accordance with a request made previous to his death. The
bluff is back of the town, and is called Mt. Pleasant; and
strangers whose curiosity prompts them with a desire to see
all the sights of this beautiful valley, often climb up to the
grave, where, reclining beneath the weather-beaten cross, they
feast on the magnificent scene that can be had from the bluff,
or listen to the story of the old pioneer's request.

In 1842, the subject of religion created considerable inter-
est, and at a quarterly meeting conference, held in Prairie Du

Chien on the 25thL day of September, in that year, the project
19

276 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

of building the first Methodist Episcopal church, was talked
over and resolved on. At that same meeting a committee of
three: Mr. Dandly, H. Brace and Sam. Gilbert, were ap-
pointed to secure a suitable piiece of ground on which to build
— to make out plans^ — estimate the cost, and to obtain sub-
scriptions in money, materials and labor, for the erection of the
church. The commitl/ee selected Lot 'No. 15, of H. L. Dou&-
man's Addition to St. Friole, part of farm lot No. 32, as the
most suitable piece of ground for the purpose. This lot was
donated to the church by Col. H. L. Dousman.. Subscriptions
to the amount $1,034.93, in cash and materials were soon
raised; and on the 6th of April, 1843, the building committee:
Rev. A. Brunsoni, Sam. Gilbert and H. Brace, entered into
a contract with H. H. Baily and G. W. Blunt, for the erec-
tion of the church. The building was to l)e fifty feet long by
thirty-six feet wide, with stone foundation — to have on the
front>end a tower fourteen feet square at the base, and thirty
feet high from the main plate, with spires at each corner; to
have a gallery on the front-end eight feet wide. Blunt and
Baily agreed to have this building finished by September 1,
1843, in consideration of $1,010 ; but the church was not fin-
ished at the time. This I believe to be a true account of the
project to build the first Methodist Episcopal church at Prairie
Du Chien.

Taking an interest in church matters, about this time, I am
able to narrate the particulars of the Methodist Sunday School
organization, and the establishing of the Sunday School Li-
brary. The latter was formed by subscription and donations,
and comprised many volumes — some very valuable works. I
was superintendent of the Sabbath School at one time, and
took great pleasure in it.

Robert D. Lester was Sheriff in 1844, and sustained the
character of being a prompt and faithful officer; he came to
his death in a bloody manner, while returning home after the
execution of some official business. He had been up to St.
Peters or St. Paul, and in the absence of steam-boats had ob-
tained a canoe, and was returning to the Prairie. He wore a

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 277

soldier's coat, and an Indian, probably mistaking him for a dis-
charged soldier, and incited with a desire for plunder, shot
him from the shore as he was paddling down the Mississippi.
An old Frenchman, in another canoe about half a mile distant,
saw Lester when he sprung up and fell over the side of the
canoe; but was not near enough to identify the Indian. The
Indian was taken, however, put in captivity, and confined two
months; but owing to a flaw in the indictment. Judge Dunn
released him, and made the remark : that, "if the people won't
select a Prosecuting Attorney, who can draw up a document
that will hold, I will not keep the prisoners in jail 'till they
rot!'' The Attorney then in question, is now considered one
of the best read lawyers in the State.

At a general election held on the 2 2d day of September,
1845, I was elected to the office of Coroner and Constable for
Crawford County. In the first office, the duties that devolved
on me were neither few nor pleasant. The holdii^ of inquests
on the bodies of persons picked up in the river, and found
murdered, were of morel frequent occurrence than now. The
country being thinly settled, detection was easily avoided, and
the penalties of the law hard to enforce; so evil-disposed per-
sons, not having the fear of certain punishment before them^.
perpetrated deeds of violence with perfect impunity. I waS:
once notified that a dead body was lying in the water, oppo-
site Pig's Eye Slough, and immediately proceeded to the spot, ,
and on taking it out, I recognized it as the body of a negro ^
woman belonging to a certain Captain then in Fort Crawford..
The body was cruelly cut and bruised; but the person not ap-
pearing to recognize it, a verdict of "Found Dead," was rend-
ered, and I had the corpse buried. Soon after it came to-
light that the woman was whipped to death, and thrown into-
the river during the night; but no investigation was m'ade, and:
the affair blew over.

For a long terms of years have I held positions that gave me .
every opportunity of observing and detecting crime; as a Po-
liceman, Constable, Sheriff and Justice of the Peace, I was an-
almost daily witness of rascalities, and could furnish a calendar-

^78 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

of crimes perpetrated in the !N"orth-West that would st-artle
even those who have lived here a much longer time, but who are
not as thoroughly posted in criminal affairs. There w an indi-
vidual now living in the town, known to be guilty of several
murders. Others are aware of this fact, and desire a full history
of the murders, which I have in my possession; but I do not
feel warranted in unfolding the history at present, but will do
so at another time and place.

The subject of education was not an unknown one in Prai-
rie Du CMen, at that day; taxes were levied and money ap-
propriated to establish and sustain district schools. In Janu-
ary, 1846, I was appointed Collector for District ISTo. 2, of
which E. W. Pelton was Trustee. It was this same year that
the affairs with Mexico came to a head ; war was declared, and
volunteers were raised throughout the county. Orders were
received from the Secretary of War to raise a company to oc-
cupy Fort Crawford during the trouble with Mexico. A com-
pany was enlisted under Brevet Major A. S. Hooe.* Wiram
Knowlton was Captain. Charles Brisbois First Lieutenant;
and on the third day of September, 1836, I received a Second
Lieutenant's commission from Governor Henry Dodge. The
inferior officers were Sergeants D. Gary, F. 'E, Grouchy and
-E. Warner; and Corporals W. R. Curts, A. Titlow, B.
Tox and J. A. Clark; the whole number of men in the com-
pany was seventy-three. The men were a little aristocratic,
and they all wanted to wear officers' uniform ; but after the one
year (which was the term of enlistment,) had expired, a new
company was mustered by Major Garland, and placed under
the command of Captain Knowlton, who maintained the
strictest of military discipline. This company was styled the
^'Dodge Gua.rds/' and was commanded by the officers of the
first company.

On the 13th day of August, 1847, First Lieut. Charles
Brisbois, died at his post, from a disease contracted while on

♦ Alexander S. Hooe, a Virginian, was a cadet in 1823 ; entered tiie army as
Brevet Second Lieutenant, 1827; First Lieutenant, 1833; Captain, 1838; wftB
distinguislied in ttie battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palm*, in the latter
of which he lost an arm, and was brevetted Major. He died at Baton Rouge,
La., December 9, 1847. L. C. D.

1837] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 279

a visit to St. Louis, and in its fatal termination the conununity
lost one of its most valuable citizens, and society an honorable
member. He was bom and educated in the Western country,
and from youth to manhood, had been engaged in the fur trade
connected with the Hudson Bay Fur Company. Residing in
a country where there was no law, he ever acted upon the prin-
ciples of right, and formed a character, which in his inter-
course with his fellow-man, had won for him the confidence
and respect of all. As a soldier, his upright and impartial
conduct had secured him the confidence of his superiors in
rank, and the respect of all under his command; as a citizen
he was liberal and active; as a friend, faithful, generous and
kind. He left a wife and family, and a large number of rela-
tives and friends. We buried him in the old Catholic burying
ground with military honors, and a large concourse of the peo-
ple were in attendance, and joined in the solemn obsequies
that consigned to their last resting place, the earthly remains
of Lieut. Charles Brisbois.

After Brisbois died^ I was promoted to the First Lieuten-
ancy in the volunteer company of ''Dodge Guards'' and re-
ceived my commission dated from the 13th day of August,
1847. I took an active part in the affairs of the post, often
performing duties that belonged more properly to the com-
manding officer, while Capt. Knowlton* being a superior dis-
ciplinarian took much pride in drilling the men.

During the year 1848, just previous to the adoption of the
State Constitution, the Winnebago Indians were scattered
through the country along the Wisconsin and Fox Eivers,
through the Kickapoo Timbers, and the Lemonweir Valley.
Orders came from the Sub-Indian Agent, J. E. Fletcher, to
collect and remove them to their Reservation, near Fort
Atkinson, Iowa.

* Wiram Knowlton, in 1828-2 9, resided with Iiis father on a farm near Lock-
port, New York, and was an attendant, in the winter, at tbe same school with
the writer of this note. We well remember he was fond of guns, and used to
stock them. Studying law, and early locating at Prairie Du Chien, he wa»
elected Circuit Judge of his district, and served from 1850 to 1856; and di^ed
a few years since a1 Prairie du Chien. L. C. D.

2 8o Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

No. 12

In 1848, when orders were received at Fort Crawford to
remove the Winnebagoes, several attempts were m.ade to do
so, but with poor success. Early in the same year I received
the following official letter :

"Office Sub Iindian Agent,

"Turkey River, Jan. 4, '48.
"SiE — In answer to your inquiry respecting the disposition
to be made of the Winnebago Indians, who may be found
wandering about through the country j, I have to say, that I
wish you to arrest them, cause them to be securely guarded,
and report them to me as early as may be practicable.
"V©ry respectfully,

"Your obd't servant,

"J. E. Fletchee^

''Indian AgH.

"To Lieut.

"Comd'g Ft. Crawford, W. T."

Upon receipt of the above, I made all necessary preparation,
and started with fifty men to collect the Indians. This attempt
was quite successful, and several hundred were arrested, and
sent to Eort Atkinson, Iowa. It may appear strange to some
persons, that such a handful of men could take many hundred
Indians prisoners, and guard them day and night as we trav-
eled through a wild, unsettled country; but it was done, and
I have a list of the names of those men who accompanied me
on that expedition. My journal, kept duj'ing the time w©
were hunting the Indians, presents numerous- interesting items,
only one or two of which, I will relate.

In taking the Indians, great caution was necessary to enable
us to approach them. When the scouts reported that Indians
had been discovered, four or -Qye of the men would start on
ahead, enter the Winnebago camp, collect all the guns and
take off the locks, before the Indians were aware of their in-
tention. Frequently a hunting party would come in while the

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 281

men were un-locking the guns, and make a demonstration of
resistance, by which time our entire party would arrive, and
prevail on them to sul^mit to the same treatment; telling them
if they came along with us quietly, no harm would be offered
them. On the 10th of May, we camped in a valley near the
Baraboo, and three days after were on Dell Creek. Here the
scouting party captured a Winnebago Indian, who told me
his part of the tribe were encamped at Seven Mile Creek. I
sent eleven men to the camp which was very large, and com-
prised many lodges. When the main body had come up to
tlement in the I^orth-West — have seen the dawning of a new
aJl the guns but one, which belonged to a young brave who
refused to give it up. Fearing he might do some mischief, the
gun was taken from him. It was a fine rifle, of which he waa
proud; but in spite of his remonstrance, the lock was taken
off, and put in a bag with others. When the piece was ren-
dered unservicable, they handed it back to the young Indian.
He looked at it a moment, and then grasping the barrel he
raised it above his head, and brought the stock down with
such force against the trunk of a young sapling as to break it
to splinters, and threw the barrel many rods from him. His
sister, an Indian girl about seventeen years old, picked up the
barrel and handed it to him. The brother bent it against the
tree and then hurled it over the bank into the creek.

The addition of the Indians put us on short allowance, and
I was obliged to send one of the wagons back to the Baraboo
for provisions and grain. Just before making camp on main
ridge, the 15th of May, my horse was bit on the nose by a
rattle-snake. The horse's head was soon swelled to twice its
natural size, and I thought him as good as dead, when an old
Frenchman offered to make the horse well by the next morn-
ing. I turned the horse over to his care, and sure enough, the
morning following the swelling had all disappeared, and the
horse was as well as ever. I asked what he had put on to
effect the sudden cure, he said he did not apply anything, but
one of the men told me that he cured the horse by looking at
and talking to it. This was the same man who cured one Theo.

282 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Warner, now living in Prairie Du Chien, when he was bitten
in the leg by a rattle-snake. His name was Limmery, and a
strange man he was; his eyes were the smallest I have ever
seen in the head of any human being, with a piercing expres-
sion that once seen could never be forgot. He would never
allow a snake to be killed if he could help it, and could take
up the most venomous snake with impunity. I saw him take
up a large moccasin snake, while we were in the Kickapoo Bot-
toms, and it never offered to bite him, while it would strike
fiercely at any third person who approached it. I could only
attribute the strange power of this man to some mesmeric in-
fluence.

We were fortunate enough to bring all the Indians to Prairie
Du Chien without accident, where they were delivered to a
body of regulars from Port Atkinson, who moved them to their
reservation. That was the last of the Winnebagoes in Wis-
consin as a tribe. There are now a few stragglers loitering near
their old hunting grounds, in the Kickapoo and Wisconsin
bottom-lands, but altogether they do not exceed a hundred
souls.

In the year 1848 a society was formed at Port Crawford,
called the ^Tort Crawford Temperance Society.'' The object
of the Society was to promote the cause of temperance. All
that was requisite to become a member, was to sign a pledge
to abstain from the use of liquor as a common beverage, for
six months, a year, or any length of time a person joining
miight see fit to set opposite his name. The Society met each
Saturday night, and so long as the interest was kept up, its in-
fluence may have been beneficial, but like many such societies,
it was short lived, and its effects forgotten.

It is an impossibility to keep liquor out of a garrison if the
men are determined to have it. ISTo matter how vigilant and
watchful the officers may be, the soldiers will smuggle it in
some way. Major Garland had arrived at Port Crawford,
and was stopping at my quarters, and was expected to inspect
the men. So strict orders were given, to prevent men passing
in and out with suspicious packages, and to search all such, to

1867] Reminiscences of Wisconsin 283

see if they had whisky about them. Trusty sentinels were
put on guard at all the sally-ports, and when the first review
came off, every man was in his place, and after Capt. Knowl-
ton had drilled them; a while, the Major was perfectly satisfied
with their discipline and equipments, and complimented the
officers on the fine appearance of the men. That same even-
ing, after supper. Major Garland proposed a stroll through
town. It was a nice, moonlight night, and we remained out
some time after tattoo. When we reached the gate that opened
into the grounds that surrounded the Fort, something attracted
the Major's attention, and he pointed an object out to me, and
asked: Is that a cat going towards the Fort? I looked
in the direction, and supposing it was only a cat creep-
ing across the green, I paid no more attention to it.
When we were about to enter the little private wicket in the
north-east gate, Major 'Garland spoke aad said, "See, that cat
is making in this direction; it moves strangely, let us see
what's the matter with it.'' So passing along under the wall,
we reached a little ditch paved with rock, that carried off the
water from the inside of the Fort, here we discovered a string
stretching out towards the cat, that still continued to approach
us. Stepping on this string, the Major cut it, and all at once
the cat stopped within a few feet of us. It was evident the
string governed the motions of the cat, and taking hold of one
end, we drew the apparent cat up to us; but on close examin-
ation, it 'proved to he a cat's skin^ stuffed with a bladder full of
whisky. The Major had just been speaking of the unusual
sober appearance of the volunteers, while I had lauded the re-
forming influence of the Temperance Society. He little sus-
pected that the patrol guard we passed in our walk, had the
barrels of their guns charged with fire-water, warranted to kill
forty rods; but it was even so.

On the eth day of September, 1848, I obtained my "honor-
able discharge," from the "Dodge Guards," aad returned to
citizen but not private life ; for soon my friends offered me the
office of Justice, which I accepted and filled for a number of
years; since which time, all matters of interest have been no-

284 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.t

ticed by many other persons, who have made the public fami-
liar with them. I will merely remark, that I have witnessed
the gradual progress of civilization in the West, for fifty years ;
came to Prairie Du Chien when it was the most extreme seir
tlement in the I^orth-West — have seen the dawning of a new
epoch, since the introduction of railroads and the electric tele-
graph, and being yet strong and robust, I may live to enjoy a
share of their benefits.

In conclusion, I would say that very many things, historical
incidents, legends, adventures and such like matters, have es-
caped my memory, but hope to relate them at some future time.
Should I move into one of the new Territories, and live another
half century, I hope to be able to give a more interesting ac-
count of an old pioneer's life.

1867]

Black Hawk War 285

Dodge's Volunteers in the
Black Hawk War

Wasiiixgton City, Jan. 20, 1851.
To the Editor of the Pctosi Republican:

Sik: — As I have received a great number of letters asking
the date at which particular companies were called into service
of the United States, in 1832 — the time for which they served
— the number, designation, &c.^ of the Regiments I had the
honor to command in the Indian War of that year, I send you
a letter from the Second Auditor, containing the information
wanted, and ask the favor of you to insert it in your paper,
hoping it may be of service to those who performed military
service in 1832, in establishing their claims for bounty lands,
under the recent act of Congress.

I remain, Very respectfully,

Your obedient servant,

Henby Dodge.

Treasury Department, 2d Auditor's Office,
January, 15, 1851.

Sir : — The following appear to be the names of the Captains,
and the periods paid for, by the companies under your com-
mand, designated "Iowa County regiment, Michigan Volun-
teers,'' in the Black Hawk war, to-wit:

Capt. Clark's Company, from 16th May to 16th Oct., 1832
" Dixon's " " 17th June to 17th July, 1832

" Gentry's " " 11th May to 9th Oct., 1832

" Parkinson's " " I7th June to 20th Aug., 1832

2 86 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

Capt. Price's Company, from 20tli May to 20th Aug., 1832
" Eountree's " " 17th May to 17th June, 1832

" Berry's " " 19th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Delong's " " 24th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Funk's " " 19th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Gehon's " " 19th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" W. Hamilton's " 2d May to 20th Aug., 1832

" I. Hamilton's " " 19th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Jones' " " 20th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Mone's " " 20th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" O'Harra's " " 4th July to 20th Aug., 1832

" Sherman's " " 20th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Terry's " " 18th May to 20th Aug., 1832

" Thomas' " " 1st June to 20th Aug., 1832

Mr. Rountree's letter is herewith returned.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

P. Clayton,

Second Avdiior.
Hon. Henry Dodge, U. S. Senate,

1867] Black Hawk War 287

Reminiscence of the Black

Hawk War*

Previous to the spring of 1832, several families had settled
in the valley of Apple Eiver, Jo Daviess County^ 111. Their
peaceful employments had been uninterrupted until the spring
of that year, at which time the Black-Hawk war commenced.
The Indians then began their ravages. Houses were pillaged,
and the inhabitants were obliged to remain concealed, while
they saw their horses taken from the plow in the field, and
driven off with shouts of savage joy. For their mutual pro-
tection, thev erected a fort ten miles up the river, where the
town of Elizabeth now stands. The men formed themselves
into a company under the command of Captain Stone, for the
defence of the fort; and thither the inhabitants fled for pro-
tection. In the course of the summer. Col. James M. Strode,
commander at Galena, sent an express of -&vg men to Dixon,
on Rock River, at which place Gen. Atkinson's army was
stationed. The express ivas commanded by Captain Frederic
Dixon, an old pioneer^ and a man of great experience in In-
dian warfare. They started out on Sunday morning — a wet,
rainy day, and to protect their guns from the dampness of the
atmosphere, the party discharged them. They proceeded on
their route, and reached Apple River Fort about noon. They
found it in a very defenceless situation. Some of the inmates
were out gathering berries, others sleeping, and some 'walking
about in quest of amusement. The express halted a few mo-
ments and then passed on. When about 400 or 500 yards east
of the Fort, some Indians secreted in the high grass fired on
the foremost man of the guard, wounding him in the hip. He

♦This article originally appeared in the Oalena Advertiser, in April, 1859,
written by "Emilie ;" and appears to be entitled to full credit. L. C. D.

2 88 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

was thrown from his horse, and the savages rushed upon him
with the tomahawk. Captain Dixon charged upon them with
his empty gun and rescued the wounded man. They then re-
turned to the Fort, and raised the alarm. Scarcely had the in-
habitants reached it, and closed the gates, when 270 Indians
surrounded the Fort, and raising the most demoniac yolk,
mingled with the Indians war-whoop, commenced an indiscrim-
inate fire. The gates being closed with Captain Dixon on the
outside, he started at full speed for Galena. In his rapid flight
west of the Fort he rode into a party of 25 or 30 Indians, who
appeared as much surprised as himself, permitting him to es-
cape without molestation. We now return to the Fort.

The Indians kept a hot fire for two or three hours, while
concealed behind the stumps or out-buildings. Capt. Stone's
company were mostly absent, and the fort numbered only
some fifteen effective men. The women and children were
panic-stricken, crying and wringing their hands. At this
stage of affairs, Mrs. Elizabeth Armstrong, wife of John Arm-
strong, of Sand Prairie, in this county, finding the Fort but
poorly supplied with balls, divided the women into two par-
ties ; the first, who could load fire arms, constituting the first di-
vision; the second were to run bullets. Mrs. Armstrong deliv-
ered to them a short effective address, telling them that it was
but worse than folly to give up to fear in such an emergency
as the present one — that they could expect no sympathy from
the Indians^ and to go to work immediately aad do their best
to save the Fort. They obeyed, and under her direction per-
formed miracles. The second division supplied the balls,
while the first received the umpty guns from the loop-holes
and returned them loaded. While passing round the Fort,
Mrs. Armstrong discovered a man who, to escape the flying
bullets, had snugly stowed himseK away in an empty flour
barrel. Quickly ejecting him from his retreat, she ordered him
to take a gun and do service. Trembling with fear, he obeyed,
dreading our heroine within, almost as much as the enemies
without. After a siege of two or three hours, the Indians re-
tired, shooting all the stock, robbing the cabins, and carrying

1867]

Black Hawk War 289

off their dead and wounded. On oiir side, one man named
Harkelrhodes was killed, and several wounded. He was bur-
ied near the Fort, but no trace remains of his resting place.

When Capt. Dixon arrived at Galena with the news of the
attack at Apple River, every man was ready to volunteer re-
lief, but Col. Strode, thinking that so large a party of Indians
would undoubtedly take the Fort, and then march on to Galena,
called out every effective man, placed a numerous guard, and
awaited an attack. The night was dark and rainy, and though
entreated and warned by the people at the Fort, a young man
named Kirkpatrick, one of the express, formed the deter-
mination of going to Galena to inform its inhabitants of the
result of the battle. In vain they expostulated with him that
the Indians had gone, no one knew where, perhaps to Galena,
and in that case, he would meet certain death. He replied
that he did not care where the Indians had gone; that he
knew the people there would be anxious to hear from them,
and he would relieve their fears before he slept. He mounted
his horse, and arrived at his destination between 10 and 11
o'clock at night. He was soon surrounded by crowds eager
to hear the news. It is doubtful if the inhabitants of Galena
ever gave to any one a warmer welcome than they did to this
noble and brave young man. He had descended from an In-
dian fighting family, and was himseK as fearless as the bra-
vest of his ancestors.

It was generally conceded that the Fort would have been
taken had it not been for the exertions of Mrs. Armstrong.
Her address and presence of mind undoubtedly enabled the
courageous defenders of the Fort to save themselves from a hor-
rid death by the hands of a cruel and unsparing enemy. Too
much praise cannot be awarded to her for casting aside all wo-
manish fear, and substituting a resolute will and strength of
courage which might do honor to those of the opposite sex.
Mrs. Armstrong was one of the first settlers in this Western
country, and she was by nature well qualified for the hardy
scenes of pioneer life. Though unacquainted with the forms

290 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. t

of fashionable life, slie is possessed of a strong mind and a kind
heart, ever ready to assist those to whom her great experience
can afford relief. She is still living, one of the best of wives
and mothers, the warmest of friends, and kindest of neighbors.
May she long live to enjoy the happiness and love to which
her courage and goodness justly entitle her.

1867]

Black Hawk War 291

Battle of the Bad Axe

The following letter appeared originally in the Milwmihee

Sentinel, Dec. 28, 1863 — furnished by a son of the writer.

Though it gives but a brief account of the battle of Bad Axe,

yet it is well worth a place in the store-house of historic

records :

"Jefferson Barracks, Mo., Sept. 2, 1832.

"My Deae a — : After a most severe and fatiguing cam-
paign of four months and a half, I returned to this place
(which I now command) on the I'Tth of August, leaving my
company at Kock Island, four hundred miles up the Missis-
sippi. I had the happiness to find my wife and children all
well, as they still remain, thanks to a kind Providence. You
have doubtless seen by the papers that a tribe of Indians, called
the Sacks and Foxes, in April last, invaded the State of Illi-
nois, and commenced murdering our citizens — ^women and
children. On the 8th of April, the troops from this post left
here under command of Gen. Atkinson, and from that time
till the 18th of August, I was constantly marching through
swamps, woods, rivers, plains, &c., in rain, in sun, hot and cold,
sleeping of course either in the open air or in my tent, which
was about as bad. We were constantly endeavoring to over-
take the Indians and fight them, but they, being mounted (800
or 900 warriors) kept out of our way, until at length on the
2d of August, we overtook their whole army on the bank of
the Mississippi, abcrat fifty miles above Prairie Du Chiens, and
immediately attacked them. After an action of three hours
we completely defeated them, they losing one hundred and
fifty or more killed and one hundred and twenty prisoners, and
20

292 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

we had but twenty-seven killed and wounded. I think the
war is over, as the Indians are dispersed and beaten, and are
bringing in and surrendering their chiefs.

"I did not see J , though he is with the army at Kock

Island. He did not arrive until I had left there. Of course
he was not in the fight, but he has been in the midst of the
cholera, and has so fax escaped. * * *

"I expect to be in your part of the country this fall or early

in the spring. I have been notified by the Government that

I have been selected to superintend the construction of certain

harbors (Buffalo, Erie, Cleveland, &c.) on Lake Erie, and shall

probably reside in Buffalo for that purpose. Had it not been

for the Indian war, I should have been ordered there in June.
* * -jf-^e- * * 4e- *

"Your affectionate and sincere

"Henry Smith."*

*The writer, Henry Smith, was a cadet (from New York) in 1813, and
entered the army in 1815, as a Third Lieutenant of Artillery, subsequently
serving in the Infantry, in various grades of Second Lieutenant, Adjutant,
Quarter Master, First Lieutenant, aid to Gen. Winfleld Scott, and Captain in
the Sixth Infantry, in July, 1826 ; then served in the Black Hawk war, and re-
signing in Nov. 1836. He was then appointed a civil engineer, superintending
U. S. harbor improvements on the Lakes, in Ohio and Michigan, from 1836 to
1840 ; was appointed Quarter Master, with the rank of Major, in March, 1847,
and served in the Mexican war, and died of yellow fever, at Vera Cruz, Mexico,
27th July, 1847. L. C. D.

1867]

Black Hawk War 293

Capture of Black Hawk

By David McBride

At the close of the memorable Black Hawk war, in the
summer of 1832, when that noble brave of the Sacs was
finally over-powered, and the most of his band, men, women
and children were killed or taken prisoners on the Bad Axe —
when naught but ignoble submission or hasty flight was left
for the hitherto successful chieftain of a once powerful tribe,
who had for many years held unbounded sway over the en-
tire territory of Wisconsin, from his favorite home on Rock
Island to Lake Superior, and at whose v/ar whoop a thousand
stalwart warriors rushed to the battle field — to submit then to
his enemies, to those who had wronged him of his heritage,
who had driven him, his family and his people from their
loved homes, from their hunting grounds and from the graves
of their fathers, was an act too degrading, too humiliating for
the proud and haughty Black Sparrow Hawk,* and there-
fore instant flight became his only alternative. He became
satisfied the battle was lost, and hastily retreated to a sur-
rounding height, overlooking the sanguinary battle ground>
accompanied by his faithful adjunct the Prophet, and for an
instant turned to view the scene of his disastrous defeat, his
haughty bosom filled with mingled feelings of disappointment
and despair, gave vent to a loud long yell of revenge on the
destroyer of his family and people, then hastily fled to seek a
temporary refuge among his pseudo friends, the Winnebagoes,
of the Lemonweir valley.

♦The interpretation of his Indian name, attached to the treaty of 1816, is
given as Black Sparrow Hawli. L. C. D.

2 94 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

This ever treacherous but cunning band had professed great
friendship for the Sac chief, in his early efforts to arouse and
combine the whole ISTorth-Westem Indians in a last great
struggle to drive the pale-faces from their territory. He had
held long and earnest councils at their village on Lake Win-
nebago on his return from Maiden, where he had met the
British agent, who had promised him efficient aid in his pro-
ject. He relied firmly on the adherence of this tribe to his
fortunes; though not numerous, they could still aid him effi-
ciently in this war of extermination, from the fact that they
were to some extent in the confidence of the officers connnand-
ing the frontier posts; but the subsequent history of the war
fully exhibited their innate fickleness and treachery, both to
Black-Hawk and the whites.

The fugitive chief fled northward with his follower, until he
entered the valley of the Lemonweir, where he hoped to secrete
himself among its numerous bluffs and rocky cliffs, over which
in former days, he had roamed and hunted with success and
security. 'Not sl trail, nor nook, nor craggy prominence but was
familiar to the hawk-eye of the now hunted and toil-worn
brave. When he reached what is now loiown as the Seven
Mile Bluff, from its lofty and precipitous heights he could see
an enemy or friend in their approaches for many miles. Here
he felt secure for the present, and cast himself down under the
shade of its ever-greens to rest his wearied body, that had for
many days known no respite or repose, dispatching his conir
p anion in search of food, and to ascertain whether any of his
Winnebago friends were in the vicinity. Late in the evening
the messenger returned without food, but with information that
they were pursued; that either friends or foes were on their
trail. IsTot a moment was to be lost; they must separate and
each secrete himself as best he could. The Prophet sought
refuge in a cliff of the romantic chimney rocks, at the east end
of the bluff, and Black Hawk selected a unique hiding place,
where he had often, years before, secreted himself, when on
hunting excursions, to watch for game. On a bold promono-
tory of the bluff that stretches far out into the valley, on its

1867] Black Hawk War 295

northern face, and high up on the summit of a towering crag,
stands an isolated gray pine with its dwarfed and straggling
limbs. About twenty feet from its base, a remarkable thicket
of small branches starts suddenly out from its trunk, like the
cradle from the ship's mast ; covered with a dense mass of deep
green foliage closely matted together, forming a complete pro-
tection from outward view to a much larger animal than man,
and from which an extended view was readily obtained of the
leading trail, which passed close to the foot of the cliff, up and
down the valley for many miles; and which has, since the
above event, been familiarly known as ^'Black Hawk's ]N"est,"
by the early settlers of the valley. Into this secure retreat
Black Hawk quickly ascended, to hold vigil over his now
extremely critical position.

For two whole days and nights he kept still in his eyrie.
Twice during the first, runners passed on the trail, but doubt-
ful of their character as friends or foes, the accustomed signal
was not given; towards evening of the third, two taU chiefs
approached in view; the quick disceming eye of the fugitive,
recognized the well-known costume and gait of his former
Winnebago friends, Cha-e-tar and One-Eyed De-cor-ra. They,
had been his friends in the early period of the contest,
had given him important intelligence of the movements of the
white men, and had even piloted him to the settlement at
Spafford's Farms and Fort Mound, while another of their
chiefs, White Crow, was acting as guide to Col. Dodge.

Soon these runner chiefs came close to the hiding place of
Black Hawk, and encamped for the night at the base of the
cliff upon which he was then perched. Before they slept, in
soft whispers, the purport of their journey was disclosed to
the deeply interested ear of their intended victim — their errand
was to make him captive. Overwhelmed w'ith disappoint-
ment at their duplicity and treachery, but fearful of the result
of an attempt at this moment to seek revenge, mth character-
istic stealthiness, at midnight, he quickly descended and again
sought safety in flight.

After communicating with his friend the Prophet, on his

296 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

future plans of escape from tlie grasp of his pursuers, they
both started for Prairie La Crosse, one hundred miles up the
Mississippi, where he could cross to the west side, and again be
secure among the remnant of his tribe under the young chief
Keokuk.

But in this he was alike deceived and unfortunate. As day
broke, Cha-e-tar and De-cor-ra, believing he had sought ref-
uge in the great cave in one of the twin bluffs, about fifteen
miles west, started on their hurried journey, and had proceeded
but a few miles ere they came upon the well known trail of the
fugitives. Though prepared for the emergency, their instruc-
tions were to take them alive, if possible, and their policy was
to keep close on their footsteps, well knowing they could make
the capture before crossing the river. For two days these wary
chiefs kept close in Black Hawk's rear, until on the evening
of the second they saw their victims enter the wigwams of
their band at the river, and in a few moments after they were
in the presence of the fugitive chief and his companion.
Black Hawk saw at once his fate was sealed, he was in the
hands of his captors, his long cherished visions of triimiph
over his white enemies instantly vanished, but he was still a
brave, a warrior that could meet his worst fate with dignified
composure. His cup of misery was well nigh full. His loved
wife and children he believed killed or taken prisoners, and
most of his followers gone to the spirit land; he stood almost
alone of his once powerful band of noble Sacs. But still he
retained his native dignity, the unconquered chieftain of the
Wisconsin. With a proud and sullen look of contempt and
withering scorn on his treacherous captors, he silently held out
his hands for the accustomed cord.

The prisoners were at once secured and taken down to Gen.
Street, at Prairie Du Chien, the Indian agent, who sent them
immediately to Jefferson Barracks.

The captors received the large promised reward for this im-
portant service, important doubtless it was to the Government,
but of exceeding doubtful character to a great and chivalrous
nation. And an act that has justly consigned the degraded

1867] Black Hawk War 297

instruments, Cha-e-tar and De-cor-ra,* to the universal and
merited contempt of the honorable of both races.
Mauston, Aug. 31, 18'57.

*Wadge Hut-to-kaw, or The Big Canoe, commonly called One-Eyed-De-Kau-
RAy, was a son of Chah-post-kaw-kaw, or The Buzzard, who settled with a band
of Winnebagoes at La Crosse, about 1787, where he was shortly after killed in
a drunken row. The father of The Buzzard was a Frenchman, named Descarrie
or De Kau-ray, who married Ho-po-ko-e-kaw, or The Olory of the Morning, a
sister of the principal chief of the Winnebagoes, according to Augustin Grignon,
but more probably the daughter, according to Judge Gale, as derived from
One-Eyed De Kaaray, who ought to be the better authority regarding his own
ancestry. This elder De-Kau-ray, fought under De Langlade during the old
French and Indian war, and was mortally wounded before Quebec, April 28th,
1760, and died shortly after at M;ontreal. His widow Ho-po-ko-e-kaw, was the
chieftess of her tribe when Carver visited the Winnebagoes In 1766, and not
improbably the heroine described by Carver, who liberated some of her country-
men when captured by Capt. Marin, in 1730. This Winnebago queen — "an
ancient woman" when Carver saw her — was also the mother of Chou-ke-kaw or
The Ladle, who was the father of Scha-chip-ka-ka, or The White War Eagle,
who has been repeatedly mentioned in this and former volumes.

One-Eyed De Kau-ray, was bom about 1772, and was consequently about
fifteen years of age when his father and other Winnebagoes settled at La Crosse.
He aided in the capture of Mackinaw in 1812 ; was out in 1813, when th4
British attacked Fort Stephenson, and took part in Col. McKay's expedition
against Prairie Du Chien, in 1814. But his participation in the capture of
Black Hawk, in 1832, has given h'im most distinction. He was a signer of the
Prairie du Chien treaty in 1825. He died near the Tunnel, Monroe County,
Wisconsin, in August, 1864, at the advanced age of ninety-two years. His aged
brother, Wa-kon-haw-kaw, or Wa-kon De Kau-ray, or Snahe Skin, the orator of
the Winnebagoes, was very recently living among his people, in Minne-
sota. L- C. D.

298 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v.

Dells of Wisconsin : Black
Hawk's Cave

These narrows in the Wisconsin River are situated in Adams
County, about a mile and a half above the place where we are
located, and are consideraHy noted for their wild scenery, and
especially for their somewhat dangerous character in rafting
through them. The perpendicular rocky banks are fifty or
sixty feet high, and, for half a mile or more, the river is nar-
rowed to about one-fourth its average width. In one place,
the rocks on either side are only about fifty feet apart; and
this place is spanned by a timber bridge, called "Dell Bridge.''
ISTear the west end of this bridge is an opening in the rocks,
called "Black Hawk's Cave," because, it is said. Black Hawk
once secreted himself there to avoid his pursuers. We lately
visited this cave, approaching it from the ice on the river.
We walked in, upon the ice, about twenty feet; then climbed
a rather dangerous precipice, some thirty feet high, from which
point one may wind around and upwards, and emerge at the
top of the bank; but we chose to take our back track rather
than climb higher. In the spring, when the river is high, we
understand the water rushes through the Dells with great force ;
and as the river is quite crooked, raftsmen find it very exciting,
as well as rather dangerous passing through. Persons from
the vicinity frequently resort there during the rafting seasons
to see the raits pass through^ and we have been informed that
sometimes as many as a hundred rafts pass there in a single
day. It is thought that when the dam at this place shall be
completed, the water will set back so as to considerably check
the force of the current at the Dells, and render rafting through
them comparatively safa

1867] Black Hawk War 299

In the spring, men and boys have great sport fishing there.
Each has his spear, with a handle ten or fifteen feet long, and
a cord attached; and, perching himself upon some projecting
rock, fifteen, twenty or twenty-five feet above the water, he
watches till he sees a good sized pickerel, cat-fish or sturgeon
turn up on the water; then, quick as a hawk upon his prey,
he darts his spear at his victim, and deliberately draws back,
by his cord, spear, fish and all. One part of this operation is
of vast importance to those engaged in it — ^that is, to make
sure their footing, so that they shall not draw themselves in,
instead of drawing the sturgeon out.

A short distance from the Dells, to the north-east, is a very
high hill, from the top of which the whole country, for twenty
miles around, may be seen. We think when our rail-road shall
be completed, that from this and perhaps some other hills in
the region, the cars may be seen to pass for twenty-five or
thirty, and possibly forty miles. In the vicinity of the Dells
the ground is covered with winter-greens; and huckle-berries,
walnuts, butter-nuts, &o., abound. We conclude that all these
attractions, especially the wild romantic scenery of the Dells
will always make them a place of resort for seekers of pleas-
ure.— Newport Mirror,

300 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Black Hawk's Autobiography
Vindicated

Early in February, 1855, J. B. Patterson, the editor and
amanuensis of Black Hawk, in the preparation of the old
Sauk Chief's narrative, published in the Oquawha Spectcdor,
the following vindication of the correctness of that work — and
whatever relates to Black Hawk, will possejss an enduring
interest to the people of Wisconsin; and, in this instance,
authenticates an important source of information relative to
the Black Hawk war, with which our early Wisconsin history
is so closely identified:

In Governor Ford's History of Illinois occurs the following

"It may be well here to mention, that some historians of
the Black Hawk war have taken much of the matter for their
histories from a life of Black Hawk written at Rock Island
in 1833 or 1834, purporting to have been his own statement
written down on the spot. This work has misled many.
Black Hawk knew but little, if anything about it. In point
of fact it was got up from the statements of Mr. Antoine Le
Clair and Ool. Davenport, and was written by a printer,
and was never intended for anything but a catch-penny publi-
cation. Mr. Le Clair was a half-breed Indian interpreter,
and Col. Davenport, an old Indian trader, whose sympathies
were strongly enlisted in favor of the Indians, and whose
interest it was to retain the Indians in the country for the
purpose of trade. Hence the gross perversion of facts in that
book, attiibuting this war to the border white people, when in
point of fact these border white people had bought and paid
for the land on which they lived from the Government, which
had a title to it by three different treaties. They were quietly

1867] Black Hawk War 301

and peaceably living upon their lands when the Indians,
under Black Hawk, attempted to dispossess them."

This extract, short as it is, contains the following "gross
perversions of facts:"

First. — Black Hawk knew all about it — it was at his own
request that it w^as written — 'and is a literal translation of his
own statements. He made it in his own justification — and as
such it was submitted to the public.

Second. — The position of Col. Davenport was not such as
the historian assigns him. He was a friend of the Keokuk or
peace party, and opposed to Black Hawk.

Third. — Although Black Hawk was grieved at the course
taken by the whites who settled upon what he deeoned his
land, he repeatedly advised non-resistance; and did not attrib-
ute the war to the "border white people," but to far different
causes — treachery on the part of members of his own tribe,
deceptive treaties, and a firm belief that Government was tres-
passing upon his rights.

My personal knowledge of Black Hawk warrants me in
aserting that he was, in many respects, a noble man. A man
deeply imbued with a sense of justice — ^gifted with a fine in-
tellect— and jealous of his reputation. It was because he had
been kindly treated by the whites, among whom he traveled
subsequent to his overthrow, that he desired to lay before them
the motives which actuated him to rebellion against the
whites, in order that they might know that he thought he had
good reasons for his course. Although as editor of the Galeni-
an, during the Black HawF war, I advocated the cause of
the white settlers and maintained their rights; when, after-
ward, I became acquainted with the \anquished chieftain, and
satisfied of the sincerity of his motives, and his desire to vin-
dicate himself before those whom ht? had been represented as
having wronged — I willingly undertook the task of editing
"his own story."

Several years ago, while at Springfield, at the time Governor
Tord was preparing matter for his intended History of Illinois,

302 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v.

that gentleman called upon me, and spent many lionrs in my
company, collecting facts relating to the Black Hawk war,
knowing, as he did, that I was a resident of Galena at that time,
and cognizant of many facts which he wished to embody in
his History. At that time he especially requested me to in-
form him where he could procure the book in question, having
heard of, but never seen it. I informed him that I had but
one copy, but that he might procure one at E;Ock Island.
Whether he ever did, I do not know. But I do not believe he
ever did ; otherwise he could not have mispresented it in so no-
torious a manner as he has done in the extract above quoted.
To prove that he has done so, I beg the reader's attention to
the following facts :

On the very opening page of this book is the following cer-
tificate, made by the U. S. Interpreter, Antoine Le Clair,
with respect to the publication. Mr. Le Clair, is still living,
near Davenport, Iowa, and any person who is acquainted with
his character, will exonerate him from any charge of dis-
honesty, let it come from whatever source it may:

Indian Agency. Ex)ck Island, Oct. 16, 1833.

I do hereby certify that Ma-ka-tai-mo-he-kia-kiak, or
Black Hawk, did call upon me, on his return to his people,
in August last, and express a great desire to have a history of
his life written and published, in order (as he said), ^^that the
people of the United States, (among whom he had been traveling
and by whom he had been treated with great respect, friendship
and hospitality, ) might know the causes that had impelled him
to act as he had done, and the principles by which he was gov-
erned." In accordance with his request, I acted as interpreter;
and was particularly cautious to understand distinctly the nar-
rative of Black Hawk throughout — and have examined the
work carefully since its completion — and have no hesitation in
pronouncing it strictly correct, in all its particulars.

Given under my hand, at the Sac and Fox Agency, the day
and date above written. '

Antonie Le Claie^
U. S. Interpreter for the Sacs and Foxes.

1867] Black Hawk War 303

Then follows an advertisment in which I made the follow-
ing statements:

^'Several accounts of the late war having been published, in
which he thinks justice is not done to himseK or nation, he
determined to make known to the world the injuries his peo-
ple have received from the wliites — the causes which brought
on the war on the part of his nation, and a general history of it
throughout the campaign. In his opinion, this is the only
method now left him to rescue his little band — ^the remnant
of those who fought bravely with him — from the effects of
the statements that have already gone forth.

^'The editor has written this work according to the dictation
of Black Hawk, through the United States Interpreter, at the
Sac and Fox Agency of Rock Island. He does not^ therefore,
consider himself responsible for any of the facts, or views, con-
tained in it — and leaves the old chief and his story with the
public.''

The charge against Col. Davenport we will dispose of by
extracts from Black Hawk's own statements:

''The trader (Col. Davenport) explained to me the terms
of the treaty that had been made, and said we would be obliged
to leave the Illinois side of the Mississippi, and advised us to
select a good place for our village, and remove to it in the
spring. He had great influence with the principal Fox chief,
(his adopted brother,) and persuaded him to leave his village
and go to the west side of the Mississippi River, and build an-
other— which he did in the epring following." — Pp. 84 and 85.

"We learned during the winter, that part of the lands where
our village stood had been sold to individuals, and that the
trader (Col. Davenport) at Rock Island, had bought the greater
part that had been sold. The reason was now plain to me,
why he urged us to remove. His object, w© thought, was to
get our lands. We held several councils that winter to deter-
mine what we should do, and resolved, in on© of them, to re-
turn to our village in the spring, as usual; and concluded,
that if we were removed by force, that the trader, agent, ajid
others, must b© the cause; and that, if found guilty of having

304 Wisconsin Historical Collections [

VOi. V

US driven from our village, they should be killed. The trader
stood foremost on the list. He had purchased the land on
which my lodge stood, and that of onr grave-yard also ! 'Ne-
a-pope promised to kill him, the agent, interpreter, the great
chief at St. Louis, the war chief at Fort Armstrong, Kock Is-
land, and Ke-o-kuk — these being the principal persons to blame
for endeavoring to remove us." — Pages 92-3.

'Now, although the taunt upon honest labor — upon a calling
honored by the title of the "art preservative of art'' — upon an
avocation which is instrumental in giving fame to the author
of that History — upon an art patronized by Benjamin Frank-
lin, and many equally as illustrious men as Governor Ford,
(the taunt implied in the use of the word printer,) comes with
ill-grace from one occupying the position he did, Vv^e will let it
pass, and charitably hope that the Governor never saw the
book. He may have heard it spoken of by others, and forgot-
ten what we told him respecting it, and thus been led to make
statements which every page of the book stamps as unfair, un-
true and unjust.

It is not uncommon for great heroes to have a desire that
their military achievements should occupy a page in the current
history of the times: Gov. Ford's great object in preparing
his "History of Illinois" was to vindicate himself from cen-
sure that had been cast upon him by a portion of the press and
the people of Illinois, for the course he pursued with regard to
the , difficulties during the Mormon war. So with Black
Hawk. That the brief remnant of his days might be passed
in the satisfaction of having shown to his white brethren that
he deemed his cause just, he gave them the history of the mo-
tives that impelled him to take up arms against them. I make
no apology for instituting this comparison. Black Hawk,
although an untutored savage, was free from social vices which
(learned from the white man) have swept so many of his race
from the stage of action — ^he was just — ^he was generous — ^he
was brave. Could Gov. Ford, with all the advantages of civ-
ilization, have been more a man than his dusky brother.

J. B. Patterson.

1867] Black Hawk War 305

Death of Black Hawk

Willard Barrows wrote to the Davenport Gazette, in 1859,
the following account of the death and burial of the noted
Indian Chief, Black Hawk:

The varied accounts of the death and burial of Black
Hawk are such as to induce the author to say, that he was not
"buried in a sitting posture in the banks of the Des Moines
River, where he could see the canoes of his tribe as they passed
to the good hunting grounds," as was stated in some accounts
at the time of his death. N^either was he buried as School-
craft says, (Vol. 6, History of the Indian Tribes, p. 454,) "with
all the rights of sepulture which are only bestowed upon their
most distinguished men," and that "they buried him in his war
dress in a sitting posture on an eminence, and covered him
with a mound of earth." He sickened and died near lowaville,
the site of his old town, on tbe Des Moines River, in Wapello
county, in this State, on the 3d day of October, 1838, and was
buried hard by, like Wapello, another chief of his tribe, after
the fashion of the whites. His grave was some 40 rods
from the river, at the upper end of the little prairie bottom
where he lived. While performing the public surveys of this
district in 1843, one of my section lines ran directly across the
remains of the old wigwam in which this great warrior closed
his earthly career, which I marked upon my map, and from his
grave took bearings to suitable land marks; recorded them in
my regular field notes, and transmitted them to the Surveyor
General. Black Hawk's war club was then standing at the
head of his grave, having often been renewed with paint and
wampum, after the fashion of his tribe. At a later period it

is said that a certain Dr. , of Warsaw, 111., disinterred

the body and took the bones to Warsaw. Gov. Chambers learn-
ing this, required their return to him, when they were placed
in the hall of the Historical Society at Burlington, and finally
consumed with the rest of the Society's valuable collection.

3o6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.r.

Winnebagoes and the Black
Hawk War

The following article, from the Washington Constitution, of
April 17, 1859, contains some interesting facts, worthy of
preservation, relative to the part acted by the Winnebagoes in
opposing Black Hawk and his followers during the border
hostilities of 1832:

The Winnebagoes consist of about 2,000 men, women and
children, of whom very favorable accounts have usually been
received for several years past. In the last annual report of
the agent, Mr. Charles E. Mix, they are described as "uni-
formly peaceable and inodffensive." But two or three instances
of drunkenness had of lat^ been known among them; and in
these — ^whatever may be thought of such rules in more en-
lightened communities — the white venders of the "fire-drink"
were promptly and justly punished by the imposition of heavy
fines. The agent states further, that these Indians have ap-
plied themselves with earnestness to the pursuits of agriculture,
the necessity of which they have been made to feel most keenly
by the almost total disappearance of the buffalo and other
profitable game from their prairies and forests. Model farms
have been established by the agency; farming implements
have been provided for the Indians; manual-labor schools are
conducted for the benefit of their children; and in every re-
spect the true welfare of the tribe is sought to be promoted by
the United States Government, and not without gratifying
evidences of success.

The delegation of that tribe who have just visited Washing-
ton, endeavored to establish the claims of a number of their
warriors to bounty laad for military services rendered to our
Government. These claims have been presented heretofore;
but the absence of the company rolls, and all other recorded
evidence, have presented obstacles apparently insurmountable.
Conscious of their right, however, these men persist in their

1867] Black Hawk War 307

demands, and appear determined to rest them on the equity of
their cause. On the 2d inst. they held a highly interesting
^'talk" upon the subject with Charles E. Mix, Esq., Com-
missioner of Indian Affairs, at the Department of the Interior,
Gen. Lowry acting as Interpreter, assisted by Peter Menaige.

Wah-con De-cor-ah, the chief, and ancient orator of the
tribe, aged about 84 years, said the story he was about to tell
would be partly about himself; but he would try and not be
too fond of it, nor make it too long. When he was a young
man his village was near to Prairie Du Chien, and the white
men came and built a village near. They were quiet in their
villages, when the news came that the Sacs and the Poxes
were at war with the whites — ^that a battle had been fought
and a great many killed; and soon they heard that another
battle had been fought and a great many whites had been
killed. He had no friendship for the Red Men who had done
these things, for he was then mourning for a member of his
family whom they had slain. The agent and one of the white
soldier-fathers then talked to him about these troubles. He had
white blood in his veins, and listened with pleasure. The sol-
dier father gave him a flag of the United States, and a military
dress, and told him the words of the Great Pather at Wash-
ington, who wished him and his people to dig up the toma-
hawk, and use it against the Sacs, side by side with the white
soldiers. He went from that council to his village, called his
young men around him, and started on the trail of the enemy.
When he had got near to where Governor Dodge was, he en-
camped, and sent word to the Governor, who soon came with
forty soldiers, and placed them among the Indians. With
these they overtook their enemies and fought them, but lost
twelve men in the battle. The Winnebagoes followed Gov.
Dodge on the trail until the battle of Bad Axe, when they were
in the thickest of the fight. Afterwards Gov. Dodge sent
word that he had whipped the Sacs and Poxes, and wished the
Winnebagoes to whip all who should attempt to cross the river :
which they did, killing many of them. The Winnebagoes
were all summer on the war trail. Their crops were neglected,
21'

3o8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.y

and they suffered mucli. The Sacs wasted the crops as they
retreated over the fields, and this made the Winnebagoes fight
the harder for their Great Father. They delivered to Gen.
Atkinson and Gov. Dodge more prisoners than these officers
could take care of, and they were therefore sent to Eock Island.

The Winnebagoes were then told by Gov. Dodge that their
Great Father wanted the big warriors taken — such men as
Black Hawk and the Prophet — and they soon heard that
Black Hawk and his men were on Keesick River, near Fort
Winnebago. The Prophet was taken by the whites; but
Black Hawk was taken by the Winnebagoes. I^ee-no-hum-
pee-kan was the man who did it. The war was then over;
their crops had all been destroyed; and so they went back to
the Fort, and received flour and other things to live upon.

When the Winnebagoes were going down with their prison-
ers, they met Gov. Clark, Superintendent of Indian Affairs,
at St. Louis, who accompanied them to Pock Island, saying
that he was much pleased at what they had done, and that
they would be rewarded by their Great Father. They also
saw General Scott at Pock Island. He drew his sword and
put it back into its scabbard, saying he had no use for it; his
red brethren had made it of no use. He said their Great
Father had heard of what had been done — "had heard of me/"'
said the old chief; and Gen. Scott thanked the Winnebagoes
in Gov. Dodge's name for the help they had given in the war.
He said our Great Father always gave money and land to his
own soldiers, and he would tell him of the services of the
Winnebagoes, and he would then treat them in the same way;
and the Winnebagoes have always believed this. Their Great
Father after whipping the Sacs and Foxes, made peace with
them ; but there was no peace made between them and the Sacs
and Foxes. The Sacs hated the Winnebagoes for helping their
Great Father, and when peace was made with the whites, they
struck at the Winnebagoes, first at the family of the speaker.
When he was away from home, they stole upon his lodge, and
killed, his wife and children! For ten years the Sacs and
Foxes struck at the Winnebagoes with their war parties, and

1867] Black Hawk War 309

at Red Cedars they killed men, women and children, and de-
stroyed all they could. This all came because the Winneba-
goes had listened to the words of their Great Father, but the
old chief thought the Commissioner must have something
about these things in the papers of his office. He could not
name the officer with whom he and his party had left Prairie
Du Chien. He had between thirty and forty warriors with
him then. His brother, who is still living, left Prairie La
Crosse with more than sixty warriors.

The Prophet said there were many Winnebagoes in that
war, and that some of them have left children who are now
poor. The old man had told the truth. The Prophet was then
very young, but was with the old chief in that war. Other
tribes, which he named, had done little or nothing, yet they
had been paid. The Winnebagoes did not ask to be paid for
all their losses and sufferings, but thought the promise made to
them should be performed.

The Commissioner explained that the names of the other In-
dians in the service of the United States had been sent to the
War Department, and that this was the reason why they had
been rewarded ; but the old chief replied that all Gov. Dodge's,
papers had been burned up at Fort Winnebago. The Winne-
bagoes had served three months, and had received nothing ex-
cept some captured horses Gen. Scott had turned over to them.
Little Hill arose and declared the words spoken to be all
true. His uncle had, in the battle of the Bad Axe, killed one
of the Sacs, and turned his scalp over, his eyes. Others now
here could tell the names of the warriors who fought with
Gov. Dodge. Little Hill had not reached the field until the
battle was over ; but Gov. Dodge was pleased with the bravery
of the Winnebagoes, and thanked them. 'None of thei-r names
are forgotten. The man who took Black Hawk was a rela-
tion of Little Hill, and ever since has been called Black
Hawk. Little Hill's brother was killed in that war. The
Winnebagoes had lost a hundred scalps in it.*

The Commissioners finally promised to cause a search to be
made for documentary evidence in their favor.

* This must be an exaggeration or an error.

3IO Wisconsin Historical Collections [roi.

Sioux and the Black Hawk
War

[The substance of a talk held at Prairie Du Chien, the 22d of June,
1832, by Gen. Street, Indian Agent, with the Sioux, who turned
back, after starting with Col. Hamilton to join the army com-
manded by Gen. H. Atkinson. From the Illinois Galenian, of July
11, 1832.]

Gen. Street : — I wish to know why you have left the army ?
Heretofore, under the instructions of your Great Father the
President, I have endeavored to keep the peace between all
his red children. When your friends were killed by the Sacs
and Foxes, I advised you not to revenge; your Great Father
would see justice done. That all the Indians were alike un-
der his protection; who, as Father of all, desired to see them
live in peace and harmony. The Sacs and Foxes had behaved
bad; they had killed several Indians of different nations; but
the President was desirous to keep peace, and urged them to
wait, and he would have justice done. He wished to show
the Indians how much better and happier they would be, if
they would live in peace as brothers, than in a state of war,
one revenging his friend to day, and the other retaliating the
next. This would be an endless war, v^here the nations could
feel no security. Your Great Father wanted to learn you to
seek justice, and not revenge. When a murder was committed,
to give up the murderer, and let him be punished as an ex-
ample to deter other Indians from like offenses.

Your Great Father feels towards his red children as you
feel towards yours. He does not want to kill, but reclaim
them, and make them good. When they err, and are bad, he
chastises them; and if they can be, he will make them good.
But when you revenge, the innocent are killed more frequently
than the guilty. You make no distinction between virtue
and crime, the good and the bad. This is not right. And

1867] Black Hawk War 311

jour Father wants to save you from the horrors attending up-
on retaliation, unite you in love, and restrain you from retal-
iation or revenge.

This is the reason I was directed to restrain you from war,
that he might interpose and bring about a lasting peace be-
tween all his red children. If this was once the case, you
would be much happier, and in security, l^ow you are in
danger when you lie down at night, of being murdered before
the morning, or rising to see your families butchered around
you. As yet, the unruly and vengeful passions of the Indians
have defeated these humane intentions from affecting the de-
sired object, and saving the effusion of blood amongst his red
children. Still your Great Father has forborne to use force,
until the Sacs and Foxes have dared to kill some of his white
children. He will now forbear no longer. He has tried to re-
claim them, and they grow worse. He is resolved to sweep
them from the face of the earth. They shall no longer trouble
his children. If they cannot be made good, they must be
killed. They are now separated from their friends and country
and he does not intend to let one return, to trouble him again.
And he directed me no longer to restrain you from war. And
I said, go and be revenged of the murderers of your friends,
if you wish it. If you desire revenge, you have permission
to take it. I will furnish you arms, ammunition and pro-
visions, and here is the man who is sent to conduct you to the
enemy. Follow him, (Col. Hamilton)* and he will lead you
to the murderers of the Winnebagoes, the Monomonees, and
the Sioux. With one accord, you desired to go to war, and
appeared bent on full satisfaction for your accumulated wrongs
and injuries. You raised the war-song, and were borne on
your way upon the bosom of the Father of waters, -under the
conduct of Colonel Hamilton. He led you into the country
infested by the Sacs and Foxes, and when in striking distance
of your enemy, you mangled the dead bodies of eleven Sacs
killed by the warriors of your Great Father the day before your
arrival, and you turned about, and came back to this place.

*Col. W. S. Hamilton, of Wisconsin, son of tbe celebrated Alexander Hamll-
ton.

312 Wisconsin Historical Collections [v

ol.

You have neither seen, nor made an effort to see, the Sacs and
Eoxes. After coming 2 or 300 miles to revenge your murdered
friends and relations, and the murderers are before you, you
turn and come home v^ithout striking a blow. Why is this ?
To me your conduct is strange. I cannot comprehend it, and
want you to explain the reasons that have influenced you to
so disgraceful a course. Your own, and the reputation of your
nation are at stake. Consider what you have done, and what
you now ought to do, to redeem the honor of your tribe.
Answer me truly; why have you returned? and what do you
intend to do ?

The Sioux chief Lark (a half Winnebago) said:
"My Father, we had a little piece of land over there (point-
ing west of the Mississippi) which we wanted to keep for hunt-
ing; but you gave us a great deal of trouble about it. Wei
live by our Father there, (pointing to Mr. Rolette, the trader,)
and he told us he wanted rats, and not scalps.* The Sacs and
Foxes would not let us hunt on this land, and killed our people.
You told us to let them alone, and leave it to our Great Father,
and he would settle the quarrel. We wanted to go to war, but
you would not let us. And now the land is not ours, and
what did we get for it ?

The Sacs and Foxes have now begun to kill white people,
and you say, go to war, and take your revenge. We came to
do so, and you sent us with a little man (Col. Hamilton) and
said he will conduct you to a great Chief, who has many men,
and some on horses; he will shew you the Sacs and Foxes.
We followed him a great way over large wagon roads that
were very hard, and our moccasins are worn out, and our feet
sore ; we can walk no further. Yet we have seen but very few
men and horses. The people were not there. We saw deso-
lated houses, and some places where houses had been burned,
and white people killed and left, but no large body of people
to help us fight. We were led to a fort, (Fort Hamilton)
where there were not many people, and we had starved until we
were tired — we did not want to go any further. We have seen

Probably meaning mtisJcrat and other skins.

1867] Black Hawk War 313

no large army as you said we would. The man (Col. Hamil-
ton) whom you sent with us did not use us well, and we turned
and came back to you.

Father ! — ^We saw a man with much beard, (General Dodge)
who had killed eleven Sacs — he is a brave man, and there are
brave men along with him; but they are very few. The Sacs
and Foxes have killed a great many white men, and are still
killing them. More than a hundred have been killed already.

Gei^. Steeet : — You have not answered the principal inquiry
I made of you. What brought you back, and do you mean,
to return? If you are tired, some can ride, as these white
men (Capts. Estes and Jones) are going to take horses for
Gen. Dodge. He will shew you the large army I told you was
on Eock river. You did not go far enough to see it. The white
people that have been killed are less than your fears suggest.

It was not that your Great Father wanted help from you,
that I told you to go to war. It was to give you an opportu-
nity to revenge your slaughtered friends. Your Father has
penned those Indians up, and he means to kill them all; and
had you remained, you would have seen how his white children
rush upon, and kill their enemies. He does not ask you to
help him; but if you want revenge, go and take it. This is
what I said to you. And I now repeat it — if you want to kill
the murderers of your friends and families, go now and do it ;
for your Great Father has devoted these Indians to death.
He cannot reclaim, and he will kill them.

What I said, was to explain to you how you came to go
down, and remind you of your great anxiety to go against the
Sacs and Foxes. I do not mean to take any notice of any
part of what you have said, except what relates to this busi-
ness. I want a direct answer. What brought you back, and
what do you intend to do?

Lark : — Our feet are sore and our moccasins worn out ; we
want to see our families. We have come thus far, and I think
shall continue on home. Six of our people have remained
with the little man (Col. Hamilton) ; some went by Galena
for our canoes; three of those who went to Galena have just

314 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

arrived. They say the white people will not let them have the
canoes, and have detained the rest of the Indians.

Father! — ^We want you to write to the white people, to let
our friends come back and give us our canoes.

Gen. Street: — When I first sent to you, I thought you
were men, and wanted to revenge your murdered friends. You
had complained of the Sacs and Foxes murdering your friends,
and being prevented by me from retaliating ; and I was willing
to give you an opportunity to take your revenge. I gave you
liberty to go, and shewed you a man to conduct you. I put
arms in your hands, and gave you provisions and ammunition,)
and you have gone within striking distance, and come back,
and say you are on your way home.

Your story is not true. These gentlemen, who sit by me,
are some of Gen. Dodge's men; they were at the place when
you arrived, and came down since you left. You were kindly
treated and provisions were plenty and were issued to you free-
ly. They also add that you said you came to get new moccasins,
and would return in a few days. Your complaints are untrue ;
they are made to excuse your coming. You have not hearts
to look at the Indians who murdered your friends and families.
Go home to your squaws, and hoe corn — you are not fit to go
to war. You have not courage to revenge your wrongs.

Yesterday one of you gave me his left hand and said, "my
other hand is stained with the blood of the Sacs and Foxes."
It was untrue; yours was a bloodless campaign. Some of
you may have mangled the dead bodies of Sacs killed by Gen.
Dodge and the brave men with him, (who know how to kill
Indians,) the day before you reached the army. You have not
seen, or endeavored to see, a live Sac or Fox.

Your Great Father gives you some flour and pork to eat —
you have no stomachs for war. Go home to your squaws, and
hoe corn, and never again trouble your Great Father with your
anxiety to go to war. Take your canoes and clear yourselves.

Note.— In justice to Mr. Rolette, the trader alluded to by the Indians, he im-
mediately explained to me, that he did use such language to the Indians; but It
was several monttis previous, when he knew I was endeavoring to prevent the
Indians from going to war. J. M. S.

1867] Black Hawk War 315

Personal Narratives of Black
Hawk War

By Col. Joseph Dickson*

My parents were natives of Pennsylvania, and emigrated
to, and settled in St. Clair county, Illinois, in the year 1802,
where I was born, January 28th, 1805. That county was
then a frontier region, and but sparsely inhabited, except a
small district of country on the American Bottom, settled
mostly by French people.

In the year 1818 my father and family moved to within nine
miles of where Springfield, the present capital of the State
was afterwards located, where I assisted my father in building
the first white man's log cabin in Sangamon county, where I
remained until the spring of 1827, when I emigrated, with
many other young adventurers to what was then called the
Fevre River Lead Mines, making the journey from Keokuk,
on the Lower Mississippi Rapids, on foot through an entirely
uninhabited wilderness, packing my provisions and blankets,
in the month of March. I spent the first summer in mining,
until the 15 th of August, when I commenced improving a
farm one and a half miles south of where Platteville is now sit-
uated. The next spring I plowed up twenty acres of prairie
land, and planted and raised a crop of corn that season, which
I think was the first field of corn raised in what is now Grant
county. I continued to carry on farming until the spring of
1832, when I exchanged it for mining.

The Black Hawk war commenced in the month of May,
when on the first intelligence of hostilities by the Indians, I
joined a mounted company of volunteers raised at Platteville.
At the organization, I was elected Orderly Sergeant in John H.
Rountree's company ; and in that capacity I served one month,
when, in consequence of the absence of the Captain, I was

iQf Grant County.

3i6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

chosen to command the company, and thus served about one
month. Then, by the order of Colonel Dodge, I took com-
mand of a spy company, and continued in that capacity, in
front of the army, during the chases to Rock River, Fort Win-
nebago, and to the Wisconsin Heights ; and at the latter place
1, with my spy company, commenced the attack on a band of
Indians who were kept in the rear of the retreating Indian
army, and chased them to the main body of Indians, when we
were fired at several times, but without injury, and I returned
to the advancing army without loss or injury to my command.

After the battle of the Wisconsin Heights, and the army
was supplied with provisions, we again pursued the Indian
trail, and I took the lead with my company and followed to the
Bad Axe River, by command of Gen. Atkinson. At the
Bad Axe, I discovered, the evening before the battle, the trail
of Black Hawk with a party of about forty Indians, who
had left the main trail, and gone up the river; which fact I
reported to the commanding General. On the next morning,
my company encountered and engaged a company of Indians
at a place near to where I had the evening before discovered
the trail of Black Hawk and his party. During the battle
that ensued, my command killed fourteen Indians, and after
a short time, say an hour's engagement. General Dodge with
his force, and General Atkinson with his regular army,
arrived at the place where I had engaged this party consist-
ing of about forty Indians; and about the time of their
arrival, we had killed and dispersed the whole party. The
main body of the enemy had gone down the river, after they
had entered on the River Bottom. I pursued with my com-
mand, passing General Henry's brigade formed on the
Mississippi Bottom; I crossed the Slough, and engaged a
squad of Indians, who were making preparations to cross the
River; after which we were fired upon, and returned the fire
of several bands of squads of Indians, before the army arrived.
I and several of my men were wounded before the other
troops came up.

After the battle was over, I was taken with others on board

1867] Black Hawk .War 317

of a steamer, which came along soon after, to Prairie Du Chien,
where I was properly cared for, and my wounds received suit-
able attention. Since which, I have spent a short period in
Illinois, and the balance of the time to the present I have de-
voted myself to agricultural pursuits on my farm, four miles

south-west of Platteville.
Grant County, 1855.

By W. Davidson'

In the spring of 1828, I arrived at Galena, situated on what
ivas then called Fevre river — the Indian name of which was
then said to be Ope-a Se-pee. At tliat time Galena was sub-
merged by the river, and presented rather a dull prospect ; but
thinking of an old adage, ^'keep a stiff lip and a light toe nail,
and you may come out yet;" and so I have — at the middle of
the horn. I then became acquainted with a few men in Galena,
who afterwards proved to be friends indeed. After looking
round a few days and making many enquiries, Yankee-like
I commenced digging at Scrabble — since called Hazel Green.
I started a prospect hole, expecting to find a mineral lode in
a few days; but I found out that success was not so much in
hard labor, as in good luck; and being a stranger, if I discov-
ered a lode, the country was then staked off in what was
called mineral lots, agreeable to the mining regulations, I
would either have to fight my way through fifty claimants, or
be swindled out of my prospect.

After a few months labor in that way, and finding nothing,
I started to view what was then called Sugar Creek Diggings.
T. D. Potts had then made what was considered a valuable
discovery; but I thought differently, and so it turned out.
The first night on our journey, we reached Col. W. S. Hamil-
ton's Diggings; he had made a valuable discovery; it is now
Wiota — so named by the Colonel himself. We then started
for the Blue Mounds, and spent the night with Col. E. Brig-
ham; he had made what was then considered, as it has since

Of Grant County.

3i8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

proved to be, a valuable discovery. He treated us very kind-
ly, and told us "our bats were cbalked." We tben went to
wbat was called tbe Cole, Downing and Dudley Diggings,
tben supposed to be proven for four million pounds of
mineral, but tbey did not turn off more than half that amount.
Mineral was tben low in price. We then went to John Messer-
smith^s Diggings ; his prospect was fine. We got there the best
dinner I had met with in the country. At that time, owing to
the low price of mineral, and living some distance from mar-
ket, and having a large family to provide for, Mr. Messer-
smith was only able to secure a comfortable support for his
family. Times have. since changed, the old man and his boys
persevered, and have been well repaid for their enterprise.
We next went on to the Dodgeville Diggings, and there found a
town, as it was then called, with ^yb or six cabins, and in three
of them "rot gut'' whisky and poor tobacco were sold; since
then quite a village has grown into existence there.

We then journied to what is called Mineral Point, which
then went by the name of Little Shake Eag. After looking
round the various diggings, I returned to Scrabble, and moved
my provisions, tools and furniture, consisting of blankets,
spider, frying pan, &c., into the neighborhood of Little Shake
Kag. I found that neighborhood staked off; and after spend-
ing three weeks or a month, and not getting permission to dig
where I wished, I pulled up stakes and moved off. My next
mining was in the neighborhood of the old Buck lead, near
Galena; but meeting with the same luck as formerly, I moved
into the vicinity of the Finney patch, which was discovered in
the fall of 1828 by men of the name of Clark, who sold to
Finney four-fifths, and to one Williams the other fifth.
Finney afterwards swindled the men out of some two hun-
dred and fifty dollars he was to have paid them in July, 1830.
I struck a vein of mineral that yielded ninety-seven thousand
pounds, and paid one-third for ground rent. This was the
custom when you dug on a lot where mineral had been raised
and sold. Part of that mineral I sold at seven dollars; the
next spring I sold the last fifty thousand at twelve dollars per

1867] Black Hawk War 319

thousand. The next fall we struck a vein that turned off six
hundred thousand of mineral that brought eighteen dollars per
thousand; and in the spring of 1839, I struck another vein,
south of the second, that turned out four hundred and ^Ye
thousand. The range altogether produced over two millions
of mineral. The old Finney patch turned off two millions
more, and good diggings there still.

In May, 1832, I bought a horse and rigging, and rode as a
volunteer, serving in Dodgers squadron, during the Black
Hawk war. During that campaign I saw more of human
nature, than I had before in several years. We had many
difficulties to encounter, of which a majority of the present
population can form but a faint conception. But to return to
my occupation: I have done what no other man has done in
these mines — I have worked on one mineral lot for seventeen
years, and worked in the ground all that time; blasting
occasionally, winter and summer, and never used an air
pipe. I have been well paid for my labor; having toiled late
and early — no eight hours have answered me for a day's work.
After the Sales of the reserved land, I moved to my present
residence to watch my timber, and dig mineral in the winter;
and I think I have made a valuable discovery. Unless some
unforeseen occurrence should take place, I expect to end my
days in Wisconsin.

I am, like friend Brigham,* enjoying the blessing of celiba-
cy, and expect to continue to do so; I have never asked the
State or general Government for any office, and never asked
the people but once for such a favor, and then my health was
delicate. Just at the turn of life, I was afflicted with that aw-
ful disease called the confluent Small Pox. I was known to
be an industrious, persevering man, and therefore had but few
friends. Every man that offered, no difference whether he
was a dead-fall keeper, block-head, pick-pocket, or a robber of
the penitentiary out of three years service, had friends. The

* Col. Ebenezer Brigham was born in Shrewsbury, Massachuetts, April 28,
1789 ; came to Wisconsin in June, 1827, and became the fir^t permanent white
siettler in what is now Dane County. He was a member of the Territorial
Council from 1836 to 1841, and a member of the Assembly in 1848. He died
in Madison, Sept. 14, 1861. L. C. D.

3 20 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.t

election returns of 1844 will show the result. Since that
time, I have had solicitations from those that would like me
to consider them my friends to come before the people; but
my answer has invariably been^ that I have known men ta
gain a competence by minding their own business.

I have seen some ups and downs in this country within the
last twenty-seven years; but I have never yet known what it
was to want a friend in need. Some of the turns of life have
been for the better, and some I think have resulted differently.
I never was known to desert a friend in poverty or affliction,
nor crave any favors of my enemies. With the blessings of
Providence, I hope to sustain the character of an industrious,
persevering candidate for heaven, and I hope to be able to dig
my own potatoes, and hoe my own cabbage, as I always have
done, and ask no favors beyond common civility.

Palo Alto, Grant Co., Aug. 31, 1855.

EEPORT AND COLLECTIONS

OF THE

STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OF WISCONSIN.

Vol. V. FOR THE YEAR 1869. Part III.

Early History of Education in
Wisconsin

[Presented before the State Historical Society by Hon. W. C. Whitford,
President of Milton College, in the Assembly Hall, Madison, Thurs-
day evening, February 20, 1868.]

Three distinct movements are noticed in the history of the
settlement of our State, and, with each of these, independent
and peculiar systems of education were introduced. The first
movement is connected with the labors of the Trench mission-
aries among the Indian tribes; the second, with the discovery
and the first working of the Lead Mines, and the third, with
what is termed the "Western fever," which prevailed exten-
sively in the Eastern States, just after the Black Hawk war.

French Missionaries and Traders

The French had acquired a foothold in Canada, and were
establishing missionary stations on the St. Lawrence, along the
Lakes, and dovni the Mississippi, while the English and the
Dutch were forming their colonies on the Atlantic coast. The
French Jesuits united the love of adventure and the desire to
extend their national domain, with their devotion to the cross,

32 2 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

as thej traversed broad regions, and settled among the savages
of the country.

Before the Pilgrim fathers had opened a college in 'New Eng-
land, the Jesuits had founded one at Quebec, and endowed it
with an ample fortune. While Massachusetts was laying the
basis of the Harvard University, and before she had adopted
any system of public schools. Father Nicolet visited Green Bay
in this State, observed closely the character of the inhabitants,
and bore back to Canada and France an account of his treaty
with four or Rye thousand Indians, assembled on the Fox
Eiver. He was followed by heroic and self-denying disciples
of Loyola, such as Mesnard, AUouez and Marquette, who
explored, two hundred years ago, the southern and the western
shores of Lakes Superior and Michigan, discovered our rivers
and called them by their euphonious Indian names. Next
came adventurers and traders, with no religious zeal, but in
quest of fame and riches ; and they by scores and by hundreds
traveled over the State and the sections adjacent.

At La Pointe, on Lake Superior, the cross was erected by
Mesnard, in 1660; but a permanent missionary station was
never formed, though Allouez labored there afterwards four
years among the Chippewas. It became subsequently a French
trading post. At Green Bay, Allouez opened, in 1669, his
chapel and mission house to the natives for instruction. This
became the most important station west of Lake Michigan —
being the center of all operations in this State and farther
South. Joliet, an envoy of France, and Marquette, the
missionary, stopped at this place, in 1673, while on their voy-
age of discovering the Upper Mississippi. La Salle was here,
in 1681, to traffic for some materials to aid him in descending
the Mississippi River, when he connected its northern dis-
covery with its southern by De Soto, and planted the arms of
France at its mouth, and named the whole valley of the Mis-
sissippi Louisiana. Here trading expeditions were sent out in
bark canoes in every direction; and here vessels were loaded,
over a century ago, with valuable furs for the foreign market.
Here an influence was exerted over the tribes of the State,

History of Education 323

which were led to engage in the French and Indian war upon
the English Colonies; and here resided, at the time, De Lan-
glade, the active leader of the Indian forces which harrassed the
British settlements and forts on the frontier, and participated in
the battle at Braddock's defeat. Prairie Du Chien, the third
French post, was selected as a place for trade, as early as 1730,
by Cardinell, a hunter and trapper; and it is stated that it
became early, also, a missionary station.

From 1763 to 1816, the British Government held virtual
possession of our State. On the surrender of the French
Provinces, English troops were garrisoned at Green Bay; but
they soon left. Afterwards a post was re-established there;
and British soldiers were stationed, for a short time, at Prairie
Du Chien. Notwithstanding the French sovereignty had been
withdrawn from the I^orthwest, and the power of Great Britain
ruled in its stead, the French traders and settlers resided and
operated as usual in the State. They added to their old trad-
ing posts, those at Sheboygan, Manitowoc, Milwaukee, Fond
Du Lac, Oshkosh, Portage, some new settlements near Green
Bay, and a few smaller ones in other portions of the State.

No French Mission Schools

'No evidence can be . found that the Jesuits ever opened a
mission school in Wisconsin before the American troops,
took posssession of Fort Howard, at Green Bay, in 1816; nei-
ther did the French traders and settlers seek to enjoy within*
our limits the advantages of any organized school. Although,
the mission on Fox River occupies so important a position im
the first annals of the country, and it was in constant connec-
tion with the most powerful tribes, and possessed a chapel aiidl
dwelling house, it was far behind Kaskaskia, the earliest Eu-
ropean settlement in Illinois, and the center of the French
efforts at colonization in that region; and, also, behind Macki-
naw, at the entrance to Lake Michigan. In both places, what
were termed colleges, were maintained a few years for the in-
struction of Indian converts. It is believed that religious
teaching was furnished at our stations to the extent of cater
22

324 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v

chisin^ the proselytes, having them learn to sing canticles, and
enjoy the imposing ceremonies of the Catholic Church.

Few First Settlers Lducated

Some of the French settlers were men of fair culture; and
up to the year 1827, a few of the most intelligent and wealthy
families sent their children to Quebec, Montreal, Detroit and
St. Louis, to axjquire an English and French education. It is
related that the pure Parisian French was spoken by the best
informed. Augustin De Langlade, and his son Charles,
to whom reference has already been made, formed, in 1745,
the first permanent settlement in the State at Green Bay. The
father was educated in France, and the son by the mission-
aries at Mackinaw. A member of Charles De Langlade's
family, and one from the Grignon family were sent to the
Seminary at Montreal. James Porlier became a resident at
Oreen Bay, after he had been trained for the priesthood — a
position he never filled. Judge Reaume, an eccentric person,
of the same place, learned to read and write in Canada, before
he emigrated. A Mr. Caddott early founded a settlement at
La Pointe, and educated his sons at Montreal. At Prairie
Du Chien there resided between 1780 and 1820, ITicholas
Boilvin and Joseph Rolette, who became justices of the
Court, and had been educated, the former for business, and the
latter for the Catholic church; and there resided also, Mich-
ael Brisbois, Francis Bouthillier, and Jean Baptiste Far-
ribault, all of whom had probably received some educa-
tion. What schools they attended, has not been ascertained;
but it is believed that they were educated somewhere in
Canada.

First Schools in Families

In a few cases it seems that private instruction was given in
the families of the French settlers. The first instance we have
learned, and in fact the first school of any kind held in the
State in all probability, was connected with the family of
Pierre Grignon, who married a daughter of Charles De

History of Education 325

Langlade, and lived at Green Bay. This was in 1Y91; and
the children of Mr. Grignon, both sons and daughters, were
taught the simple elements. Their teacher was James Por-
lier, whose name has already been mentioned, and who must
be regarded, as far as we can gain any information, as the first
school-master in the State. He did not give his entire atten-
tion to this business, for he was engaged in what was consid-
ered a more important and dignified occupation, that of clerk-
ing in his employer's store. The son of an enterprising busi-
ness man, Porlier had received a good education in the Sem-
inary at Montreal, which was designed to prepare young men
for the Catholic priesthood, and emigrated to Green Bay, the
same year he taught. He was of medium size, light complex-
ion, a little bald, very mild, and invariably pleasant to all.
He became a most useful man, was highly esteemed, and filled
during the forty-eight years he resided in the State, the ofiices
of Captain of the Militia, County Commissioner, Chief Justice
of Birovni county, and Judge of Probate.

In 1824, Joseph Rolette, a merchant at Prairie Du Chien,
engaged a man by the name of Curtis,* a cashiered captain
in the army, to take charge of a whisky distillery, which he
thought of erecting; but the work on the building being de-
layed, and Mr. Curtis being therefore idle, Mr. Rolette kept
him in the meantime employed as a teacher in his family, —
a kind of business which, it is said, he was very well qualified
to perform. In all probability other schools were formed ear-
lier in some families at this place. A young lady. Miss Craw-
ford, who was raised at Prairie Du Chien, obtained at home
ai good common education, and learned to speak English and
French fluently. She assisted Mrs. J. H. Lockwood, in 1825,
in teaching at her place the first Sunday-school in the State.

The descendants of some of the most intelligent French
traders are now among our most respectable citizens; but a
large majority of those living here before the advent of the

* Daniel Curtis entered the army, from Miclaigan Territory, as an ensign, in
January. 1812. and promoted to Second Lieutenant in December following, and
to A First Lieutenant in April, 1814, Adjutant of his regiment the same year,
Captain in 1820, and dismissed from the Service in January, 1823. He must
have served creditably during the war of 1812-15, to have merited his suc-
cessive promotions. L. C. D.

326 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

American population, were ignorant, opposed to the customs
of civilization, indolent, readily associated with the Indians,
and looked with positive suspicion and hatred upon the ener-
getic and educated pioneers from the Eastern States, and all
the institutions they introduced. We might give incidents,
showing how they persistently annoyed the earliest school
teachers, and the founders of the first schools in the State.

Schools Among Indians

We have already spoken of the early efforts of the French
missionaries to maintain schools at Mackinaw and Kaskaskia
for the instruction of the natives. Never have any class of
laborers shown more humane, unselfish, and unflagging zeal
to elevate and christianize the Indian race. The fur traders
and their attaches partook, in some measure, of the same
interest. On the contrary, the British Government, which held
a sort of military sway in the State for over fifty years, made
no exertion to civilize the Indians, but bent its energies to
keep them in ignorance and barbarism and to thwart the
influence of the missionaries, so that its fur trade com-
panies might carry on a more lucrative traffic. The effect of
the toil and the treatment by the Jesuits, of their language
and their manners, is seen among these children of the forest
after the lapse of two hundred years. French words with
the pure accent are often heard in the lowliest wigwam; the
courtly style of the refined missionary and of the polished trader
has been rudely imitated in many a chieftain's council; and
an unalterable attachment for their benefactors is felt in nearly
every tribe which formerly dwelt within our borders. !N"ever
have any people had better opportunities for improving and
saving them^ if their utter destruction did not seem to be
decreed.

The schools in Illinois, at the Straits of Mackinaw, and on
the St. Lawrence, established between 1637 and 1721, were
admirably adapted to the traits of the Indian converts. Their
minds were captivated by the ceremonies of their religious
festivals and almost daily mass. Supported largely by contri-

1869] History of Education 327

butions from abroad, thexe was scarcely any need, on their
part, of toiling for their subsistence. In Canada they dwelt in
a village of bark cabins; and in Illinois, in houses whose
walls were a rude frame work, with the spaces between the
posts and the studs filled with clay, both far better than their
skin-covered huts. The boys were taught to read, write, chant,
and work slightly at some trade; and the girls, in addition to
reading and writing, learned to sew, knit and embroider. But
these schools, on which so many hopes rested, gave no signs
of success. Like them, the missionary efforts failed in the civ-
ilization of the barbarous tribes. Among the native Indians
of our State, some of whose young people attended in all
probability one or two of these schools, there is not found to-
day in any dialect the single trace of a grammar, vocabulary,
catechism or prayer book.

After our own Government had assumed the control of this
section of the West, exertions were renewed by various reli-
gious bodies to educate and christianize the Indian population.
In the employ of the Episcopal Missionary Society of this
country, Kev. Eleazer Williams, who became afterwards
somewhat famous as the pretended Dauphin of France, con-
ceived the idea, in 1820, of colonizing at Green Bay the Six
!N'ations of I^ew York. In 1823, he started, in connection
with the mission among the Indians, a school of fifty white and
half-breed children, on the west side of Fox River, opposite
Shanty Town. It was for several years under the charge of
Hon. A. G. Ellis, now of Stevens' Point. In 182Y, the Mis-
sionary Society determined to erect extensive buildings for a
boarding school, in which they might educate "children of full
or mixed Indian blood." Rev. Richard E. Cadle was selected
to conduct the enterprise. He was a man of energy, cul-
ture, and christian worth; and he labored devotedly as a mis-
sionary and teacher at Green Bay and in its vicinity for five
years, and became afterwards chaplain at E(5rt Howard, at that
place, and at Fort Crawford, at Prairie Du Chien. The build-
ings which were erected for the school, were situated on a high
plateau, overlooking the beautiful Fox River, and cost $9,000.

328 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

The principal edifice was 30 by 90 feet, and two stories high.
Two wings were attached, one 20 by 30 feet; the other 20 by
80 feet. At first the school seemed decidedly snccessful. I*"
was attended, in 1831, by 129 children, from ten different
tribes. Thoy were received between the ages of 4 and 14, and
were taught habits of industry, a good English education, and
the elements of the Christian Eeligion. Some of the time
seven teachers were employed. Though large amounts of
money were expended in sustaining the school, it gradually
diminished in size, and in 1839, it closed its operations with
only 36 pupils. Col. Whittlesey, who visited it in 1832,
says, ^^the mission was very ably conducted; and in the ex-
amination of the school, though it exhibited the highest proofs
of the perseverance and the benevolence of its conductors,
there was left no room to doubt the entire failure of a school
so dear to American philanthropists."

An incident is coamected with the history of the school,
which shows the native aversion of the Indian to culture and
civilized life. In the time of the Black Hawk war, a party of
the citizens of Green Bay and the Monomonee tribe, while out
on a trip in search of the hostile Sauks and Foxes, in the cen-
ter of the State, captured a small Indian girl; and taking her
to Green Bay, they placed her in the mission school, where she
remained about a year. She would not learn, and ate but
little; and becoming feeble and emaciated, they had to re-
move her from the school, and send her back to her people, to
save her life.

Near Green Bay, there was also opened a Catholic mission
school in 1830, by Eev. Samuel Mazzuchelli, an Italian
priest. He was zealous, well educated, and talented, and had
the care of the school for four years. The mission was aided
by the Government, and out of the annuities of the Monomo-
nee Indians.

In a treaty with the Winnebagoes in 1832, our Government
agreed to maintain, for twenty-seven years, a school at or near
Prairie Du Chien, for the education and the support of such
Winnebago children as should be sent voluntarily to it, and to

1869J History of Education 329

be conducted by two or more teachers, at an annual cost not
to exceed three thousand dollars. The school was started on
the Yellow Eiver, in Iowa, and kept there for nearly two years.
It was afterwards moved to the Turkey River, in the same
StSite, where suitable buildings were erected, and Rev. David
Lowry, of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, took charge
of the school. It was not very successful, though Mr. Lowry,
an enterprising and accomplished man, remained among the
Winnebagoes as their agent until 1848. Evidence from every
source, shows that the schools in this State, for the educatioin
of Indian children, or adults converted to the Christian faith,
have disappointed the expectations of all laborers therein, the
patient as well as the most enthusiastic. Says Shea, a Cath-
olic historian, "the nineteenth century fails, as the seven-
teenth failed, in raising up priests among the Iroquois, or the
Algonquin," in the Catholic schools.

Military Posts and their Schools

Green Bay and Prairie Du Chien were made military posts
in 1816, and were each occupied by American troops. In the
same year Port Crawford was built at Prairie Du Chien, and in
the year following. Port Howard, at Green Bay. Port Winne-
bago, near where Portage city now stands, was erected and
supplied with a garrison in 1828. Several forts, block houses,
and stockades were constructed subsequently to 1827, in the
Mineral Region, for the protection of the lead miners, and dur-
ing the Black Hawk war, in 1832. These were temporarily
occupied by American soldiers, or the militia of the Territory.

"Settlers from the States," as they were then called, began
to locate at Green Bay, soon after the Port was erected there.
"In 1820, the banks of the Pox River assumed a cheerful and
cultivated appearance. Many new families were added to the
old Prench settlements, and farms were commenced, villages
located, and towns laid out and projected to an extent that
gave promise of a future prosperity, which at this day has been
verified." Green Bay had, in 1824, besides the garrison of
United States troops, a population of whites and mixed bloods

330 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

to the rmmber of six hundred. In 1816, at Prairie Du Chien,
the second white settlement in importance, La Pointe being the
third, there were only twenty-five or thirty houses, and these
were occupied by French, Canadians and half-breeds. It is
believed that no American resided there at the time. It con-
tained, in 1830, two or three families from the Eastern States,
among a population of some four hundred. !N^ot till 1835 did
the Americans, in any number, settle in that place. Some
residents were found in the vicinity of Fort Winnebago, when
the great tide of emigration from the East and the South had
commenced, though for upwards of thirty years Canadian-
French traders, and occasionally an American, had transacted
business in carrying goods over the portage of the Fox and
Wisconsin rivers.

At these principal forts were conducted what were called
"post schools." They were under the direction of the com-
manders of the garri&ons, and furnished instruction for the
children of the ofiicers, soldiers, and prominent citizens, living
in the vicinity of the forts. Usually the chaplains had charge
of the schools, though other persons were sometimes engaged.
In 1817, a Sergeant by the name of Reeseden, a person of
character and a good education, taught in the Fort, at Prairie
Du Chien; and afterwards, for many years, other non-com-
missioned officers performed the same duty, being usually de-
tailed for that work, and receiving fifteen cents per day above
their regular army wages of $5.00 a month. The children
of commissioned officers were usually sent abroad to be educa-
ted; those of the other officers and the common soldiers were in-
structed at the Fort. About the year 1824, when there were
at Green Bay only six or eight American families among the
citizens, and the same number belonging to the officers, a com-
mon English school was opened in connection with Fort How
ard, and was taught by a discharged soldier, in a school house
erected just outside the walls of the garrison. The school
is mentioned as being in operation in 1832, and was taught
from time to time, as long as the Fort was occupied by the
United States troops. Rev. Mr. Cadle conducted the school

History of Education 331

when he was chaplain of the Fort, after 1832. In 1836, he
moved, to Prairie Du Chien, and filled the same position at
Fort Crawford for five years. Major John Green, command-
ing officer at Fort Winnebago, engaged, in 1835, Miss Eliza
Haight, as governess in his family ; and he allowed the children
of other officers at the post to attend the private school;
there were in all about a dozen pupils. In the spring of 1840,
Hev. S". P. Keyes became both chaplain and school master of
the Post, and taught about twenty children, some of them
over twelve years of age. At this place there were no other
prominent schools, until Portage City was incorporated in
1846.

Augustin Grignon, a resident of the State for over seventy
years, says, ''they had no early schools at Green Bay
— none till after the coming of the American troops," in
1816. The inhabitants were too fond of gayety and amuse-
ments, and too much allied to the natives in spirit and habits,
to originate so important an enterprise as a school. Col. Eben-
ezer Childs, who lived at Green Bay for twenty-five years,
states that the first school-house in the place was built soon
after the arrival of the first steam-boat at Green Bay. So the
erection of the first school-house in the State, was in some
way the outgrowth of the genius and energy which have
revolutionized the modes of land £jid water communications
in this century, and formed in a large degree the brains and
the muscle of Western enterprise.

!N'early at the same time that the Episcopal mission was
started, other schools for the accommodation of the citizens of
Green Bay and vicinity, were opened. Hon. Henry S. Baird,
a resident there since 1824, says, that in the year of his arrival
a scliool was kept in a log school-house, about two miles from
the city, by Daniel Curtis, who has already been spoken of
as teaching at Prairie du Chien. He continued there for two
years, and others taught in the same house for years after he
left. About the year 1828, a log school-house was built at
Shanty Town, by subscription; and a young lady, Miss
Caroline Kussell, from the East, was engaged as teacher by

332 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

the American families, five in number, living in the neighbor-
hood. Subsequently Miss Frances Sears taught in the same
place. Both were well qualified to give instruction in reading,
writing, arithmetic, English grammar and geography, the only
branches introduced. An ability to teach the last two studies
was considered a high attainment; for almost up to that time,
the only qualifications required of a common school teacher
were to read, write and '^^cypher to the rule of three.'' The
scholars were generally young, of both sexes, and mostly
children of American parentage. The schools were supported
by subscription, paid by the parents of the pupils. About the
year 1833, a school was opened in the north ward of Green
Bay, and was kept by Mr. William White, in a frame school-
house, erected for that purpose. In addition to the common
rudiments, Latin and a few of the higher English branches
were taught. In 1832, a school was established at Depere,
six miles up the Eox River, and the seat of the ancient
!French mission. Miss Sears is again spoken of as teaching
at Green Bay, in 1836, in a frame school-house, 24 by 30
feet, and as having thirty-five pupils. A portion of the
house, in which she taught is still standing, and is used as a
dwelling.

At Prairie Du Chien, similar schools were opened. Ser-
geant Reeseden, who taught for a short time the post school at
that place, had charge of a private school outside of the Fort
for eight or nine months, in 1817; and a gentleman fiom Can-
ada, by the name of Giason, taught after him in both the
English and the French languages. Mr. Curtis, whom we
have already mentioned, conducted a select school of 20 to 30
scholars, and succeeded in teaching the higher branches. In
1830 or 31, Judge Mills, of Grant county, conducted a priv-
ate school. In 1832, a student of divinity and of the Cum-
berland Presbyterian sect, taught there for six months. In
1836, an infant school of 20 scholars was held by a Miss Kirby,
from ISTew York; and a select school of thirty scholars by
some one else. These schools seem to have been taught in
private dwellings. Between 1840 and 1850, a private school

1869] History of Education 333

was taught for several years by a discharged soldier of ISTapo
leon's army, by the name of Henry Boyer. He is represented
as teaching French successfully, and as conducting his school
in an admirable manner.

Early Schools of Lead Region

We have already alluded to the discovery and the occu-
pancy of the Lead District, as the second important movement
in the settlement of the State. Some slight attempts to
work portions of the Mines were made as early as 1822, but
the hostility of the Indians living in that region prevented any
further operations. They were exceedingly jealous of the
Ameiricans, whom they would not allow to examine their
country. By 1827, an excitement in regard to the Mines, like
the more recent gold fever, prevailed in certain portions of
the States, East and South. Hundreds rushed to the district,
which, in a short time, was computed to hold five thousand in-
habitants. The miners came principally from the Central,
Western and Southern States, invited and protected by the
Government. Checked for a season by the alarm which grew
out of what is called the "Winnebago War," and by the ac-
tual hostilities of the Black Hawk contest, ^ve years after,
the emigrants spread rapidly over the whole section; and
when Wisconsin was made a Territory by itself, in 1836, the
Lead Region had a very large majority of the population.
Prominent villages were located and built up near valu-
able openings in the Mines, as Mineral Point, Platteville,
ShuUsburg, Dodgeville, Cassville, Gratiot's Grove, and others.
Several of the most useful citizens of the State arrived with
the miners. I might mention Gov. Dodge, whose messages
subsequently showed that he took the liveliest interest in the
establishment of public schools; Hon. John H. Rountree,
recently a Senator from Grant County, and who aided ma-
terially in opening the first schools in the south-western part
of the State, including Platteville Academy, now a State for-
mal School; Gen. Charles Bracken, who first introduced in
the Territorial Legislature a bill to create a common school

3 34 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

fund; and Col. Daniel M. Parkinson, who was cliaimian
of the Assembly committee which made the earliest inquiries
into the expediency of establishing a common school system in
the State.

At Mineral Point, in July, 1830, was built the first school
house in the Mineral District of which we can gain any ac-
count. It was constructed of logs, and when not occupied by
the school, it furnished also accommodations in its single room
for a justices' court, and for religious meetings. In August of
the year in which it was erected, a select school was opened in
it by Mr. Henry Boyer, who taught afterwards, as we have
already shown, at Prairie Du Chien. He remained there three
terms, and charged the small children two dollars and a half for
their tuition, and the larger ones three and a half. The house
soon passed into the hands of the Presbyterian church, and
another was put up in 1834, and a school was kept in it
for a year, by the Rev. Mr. Campbell and his daughter, the
first lady teacher of the place. In 1856 a school of fifty schol-
ars was taught in the Methodist log meeting-house, probably
by a Mr. Parker and his daughter.

The second school in the Mineral District was started at
Platteville in the spring of 1834. A school house had been
erected the year previous, west of where the village now stands.
It was 18 by 20 or 22 feet, one story, and made of hewn logs,
well put together. The school was supported by subscription,
had twelve or fourteen pupils, and was taught by Samuel
Huntington, an experienced school master. He seems to
have been at the time an adventurer, and directed his atten-
tion and that of his scholars in hunting for veins of lead in the
vicinity. The school was afterwards moved into the village,
and was taught, in 1836, by Dr. A. T. Locey, who had forty
pupils.

Though prominent men in this district engaged subsequently
with much earnestness in developing the common school in-
terests of the State, yet the cause of education made feeble
progress in the beginning among the miners. Their occupa-
tion did not tend toward building up schools; they migrated

1869] History of Education 335

from place to place, as old diggings failed, or as new ones
were thought to be more profitable, and they held no title to
the soil for several years. Besides, the population were largely
from sections of our country where public schools had not
been established, and generally they knew very little of their
worth. Still they gradually came to feel the need of an edu-
cation for their children; and by 1836 a few other private
schools, supported as those we have mentioned, were probably
established. .

Settlers from Eastern States

The Black Hawk war was the source of inestimable advan-
tage to the State, in directing public attention in the East to
large portions of our Territory, unoccupied and but slightly
explored. The glowing accounts of the rich country, published
in the newspapers, and carried back by soldiers in the army
to their friends, induced the speedy emigration to our borders
of thousands and tens of thousands of intelligent, hardy and
enterprising people from 'New England and the Middle States.
Settlements were made along the Lake shore from 1834 up to
1837; and for the next four years, in the fertile Rock River
Valley, around Winnebago Lake, and in the country between
these and the shore of Lake Michigan. The financial revul-
sion of 1836, ruining hundreds of families, compelled them to
seek new homes and build up new fortunes on our prairies and
by the side of our waters. Subsequently, the tide of the in-
coming population flowed down the Wisconsin Valley and into
the adjacent sections north, and lastly up the Mississippi
River, and along the many streams which empty into it on the
East; so that by 1850, the counties in the l^orth-western part
of the State were receiving their share of the settlers..

First Schools of Eastern Settlers

Wherever the families of the Jews anciently resided in the
same neighborhood, they built a synagogue; and wherever
even a less number of the Eastern emigrants settled together
in the State, they started at once a school. They were carry-

336 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v

ing out the inspirations of their former homes, and were lay-
ing with the eye of prophecy, the sure foundations of what
Willliam Penn called a ^ ^glorious country," when he urged
upon the British ministry, a century and a half ago, the ad-
vantages of extending the boundaries of their possessions west-
ward into the Mississippi Valley.

In 1836, there were eight small private schools in the State,
and two hundred and seventy-five pupils attending them, ac-
cording to the statement of Kev. S. A. Dwinnell, of Eeeds-
burg, an early pioneer. The population was estimated to be
about 9,000, exclusive of the Indians. Besides the schools
already mentioned, there were those at Kenosha, Milwaukee,
and Sheboygan. The one at Kenosha was opened in Decem-
ber the year previous, by Be v. Jason Lothrop, a Baptist min-
ister, and well educated, with about thirty scholars, in a log
schoolhouse. The first frame house erected soon afterwards
in the city was occupied by a school. The first school in
Milwaukee was taught in the winter of 1835-'36, by David
WorthingtoUj now a Methodist minister, in a private room on
East Water street, one block south of Wisconsin street. In the
fall following, the first public school was organized by law in
the bounds of the State, and the only one under the school laws
of the Michigan Territory as such, was conducted by a gentle-
man by the name of West, in a framed school house, now used
as a store, and standing in the Second Ward of the city, and
known as l^o. 371, Third street. At Sheboygan, in the win-
ter following, Mr. F. M. Bublee taught the first school in the
county, in a private room, with only a few scholars. These
schools except the one organized in Milwaukee, were supported
by subscription.

We might proceed in the enumeration of instances, in which
private and public schools were started in every village, and
on nearly every two miles square of the settled territory, un-
til you were weary in examining the particulars. We have
noticed those presented above, because they were put into
operation the first of any in the State ; and because they show
by what means, and at the suggestion of what ideas, these

1869] History of Education 337

fountains of our intelligence and culture originated. By fui-
ther investigation you would find that some one or two indi-
viduals in every community, noted for their intelligence and
public spirit, first made arrangements for gathering the child-
ren into a school, which was held in a private dwelling, or a
rude log school house; that they selected for a teacher some
person with a fair common school education, who had had some
experience in pedagogy; and that they were guided in the-
choice of studies and text books to be introduced by what
they had learned in connection with schools in the East, and by
the needs of the scholars. Before any system of public schools
was established, the teacher's salary was paid by subscription,
which rated usually from two to three dollars a term per pupil.
The schools were generally taught three months in the year;
the scholars were active and intelligent, and had a special
fondness for arithmetic. The wages paid the teachers were
low, and scarcely was one ever induced to remain long at his
useful, but unhonored toil.

System of Public Schools

Wisconsin was attached to Michigan Territory from 1818 to
1836; and from 1836 to 1848, it was a Territory for a short
time in connection with Iowa, and afterwards by itself. Soon
after the erection of its own Government, the school code of
Michigan was adopted almost entire. Defective as it was, and
modified in some of its provisions almost every year, it contin-
ued in force until the State was organized in 1848. Since it
required nearly two years after the adoption of our Constitu-
tion, for our present system of public instruction to go into op-
eration throughout the State, let us notice the begimling and
the. growth of this system in our legislative action from 183,6
to 1850, when the first report of the State Superintendent was
issued.

The protection of the lands donated to Wisconsin by the
United States Government for school purposes, and the crea-
tion of a Common School Fund first called the attention of our

338 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

public men to the cause of education. The first resolution on
school matters ever introduced into our Legislative Assembly,
was at the session at Belmont, in 1836, and referred to the re-
port of a bill to "prohibit persons from trespassing on the
schools lands in this Territory by cutting and destroying tim-
ber." A memorial to Congress was adopted, requesting them
to authorize the sale of the school section in each township,,
and appropriate the money arising toward creating a fund for
the support of common schools.

At the second session, November 7, 1837, a bill was passed
to "regulate the sale of school lands, and to provide for or-
ganizing, regulating and perfecting common schools.'' Like
the statutes of Michigan, it enforced the formation of schools
in every town. A law had been enacted in Michigan, in 1827,
ten years before, requiring every town having over fifty fami-
lies, to support by tax a common school; having one hundred
families, two schools; having one hundred and fifty families,
three schools ; and so on. If this duty was neglected, the town
was compelled to pay a fine in proportion to the number of
the families living in it, and this fine was distributed among
the poor districts of the county to aid in maintaining schools.
But in Wisconsin, it was provided that as soon as twenty elec^
tors should reside in a surveyed township, in which was the
school section, they should elect three Commissioners of com-
mon schools, who should hold their office three years, apply
the proceeds of the leases of school lands to pay the wages of
teachers in the township, lay off districts, and call school meet-
ings. Each district should elect three Directors to hold their
office one year; and they should locate school houses, hire
teachers for at least three months in the year, and levy taxes
for the support of schools. This tax was 'pro rata on the at-
tendance of the pupils; and the children of persons unable to
pay the tax, were kept in the school by a tax on all the in-
habitants of the district Five Inspectors, the third set of offi-
cers, were elected annually to examine schools and inspect
teachers.

]869] History of Education 339

In 1839, this school law was revised. Every town with not
less than ten families was required to become a school district,
and provide a competent teacher ; and with more than ten fam-
ilies, it was to be divided into two or more districts. The In-
spectors should take charge of the school houses, lease and
protect the school lands, and make returns of the number of
Bcholars to the CoTm.ty Commissioners. Trustees in each dis-
trict might be elected, and could perform for the district, the
duties assigned to the Inspectors. A teacher neglecting to
procure a certificate, could be fined fifty dollars — one half to
go to the informer and the other half to the district in which
he taught The rate bill system of taxation was repealed, and
a tax for building school houses, or to support schools, not to
exceed one-fourth of one per cent, was raised by the County
Commissioners on the whole county.

In 1840, a memorial to Congress was adopted, representing
that the people were anxious to establish a common school
system with suitable resources for its support.

At nearly every session of the Territorial Legislature, a large
number of local acts were passed, authorizing districts to raise
money by tax to build school houses. This became very an-
noying.

Important amendments were made in the school law, in 1840
and '41, restoring the office of Town Conmiissioners, which had
been dropped in the act of 1839, and assigning to them the
duties of the Inspectors ; laying down more complete directions,
for forming school districts; making five officers in each dis-
trict, Clerk, Collector, and three Tnistees; restricting to male
residents over twenty-one years of age the privilege of voting
at district meetings, and requiring such voters to be free-hold-
ers, or house holders ; changing the fine of teachers for neglect-
ing to procure certificates from fifty dollars to forfeiture of
a sum not exceeding their wages ; authorizing certain amounts
of money to be raised by tax in the district for building school
houses; and defining specifically the duties of each school oiH-
oer.

At the session of 1846, a bill to provide for the appoint-
23

340 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

ment of a Superintendent of Common Schools passed one
branch of the Legislature, and was rejected in the othea*. The
need of this officer had been felt in various places in the State,
a.nd petitions in favor of his appointment had been received
at previous sessions. With all these changes the law was
still defective in respect to the proper organization of the
schools, and the providing of money for their support. The
rate bill tax, or private subscription, had to be resorted to
in many districts, to keep the schools in operation.

It became evident by 1846, that a strenuous effort wotdd
be made to organize a State Government. Until this was
effected, the fund accruing from the sale of the school lands
could not be received from the General Government, nor the
income of this fund be applied toward maintaining schools.
The benefit of obtaining and using this immense fund, sup-
plied one of the main arguments for forming a State Constitu-
tion. Gov. Dodge urged this subject upon the attention of
the people in his message of 1847, stating that they could then
control the sale of the sixteenth section in each township, and
enjoy its avails, together with the donation of 500,000 acres of
land by CongTess, and ^ve per cent on the net proceeds aris-
ing from the sale of the public lands in the State. At once
the expediency of establishing the free system of public
instruction throughout the State, was discussed in many
places^ and by liberally minded men.

At Kenosha, where excellent schools had been sustained,
the matter was first considered; and the first free school ever
established in the State, was organized here in 1845. The
leader of this movement was Col. M. Frank, of that city, to
whom the State, also, is more indebted than to any other citi-
zen, for her excellent free school system. Educated in the
central portion of 'New York State, and moving to Kenosha
in 1837, he has labored devotedly to promote popular educa-
tion. In February, 1845, as a member of the Territorial Leg-
islature, he introduced a bill authorizing the legal voters within
the corporate limits of his town to vote taxes on all the assess-
ed property, sufficient to support schools. The bill became a

History of Education 341

law; and by one of its provisions, it was required to be sub-
mitted to the people before taking effect. The opposition to
this law was very strong, and there was evidently, at first, a
majority against it. The idea of taxing large property hold-
ers, who had no children to be educated, was denounced as
arbitrary and unjust. Frequent public meetings were held for
discussion and lectures, with the view of enlightening the
public mind on the great duty to educate at the public ex-
pense. After several unsuccessful trials to procure the adop-
tion of the act, it was at length accomplished by a small ma-
jority in the fall of 1845. This transaction had its due influ-
ence on other portions of the State.

In the winter before the first Constitutional Convention met,
a Common School Convention was held at Madison, on three
successive evenings, with the design of preparing the public
mind for the establishment of a system of free schools, similar
to that of Massachusetts, at the earliest practicable period. It
was largely attended by the members of the Legislature then
in session, and Col. Frank was elected chairman. The princi-
pal features to be adopted in the school laws of the State, were
considered; and the deficiencies and the evils of the old law
were pointed out. They recommended the Legislature to ap-
point a general agent to travel through the State, lecture on
education, collect statistics, examine the condition of schools,
and organize Teachers' Associations. A select committee, con-
sisting of Rev. Lewis H. Loss,* Levi Hubbell, M. Frank,
Caleb Croswell, C. M. Baker and H. M. Billings, were
appointed to lay the subject, discussed by the Convention, be-
fore the Legislature. They state in their report, that "the
committee regard it among the highest and most important of
the duties of Legislatures to provide, as far as may be, by suit-
able legislation, for the education of the whole people:"

♦Rev. L. H. Loss, a Congregational clergyman, was formerly settled at York
Mills, N. Y., and at Elyria, Ohio. He came to Wisconsin, and was for some
considerable time Principal of Beloit Seminary ; and, in August, 1846, accepted
a pastoral call to Rockford, 111., and sub&'equently to Chicago. His early edu-
cational labors in Wisconsin deserve grateful remembrance.

Caleb Croswell. an associate of Mr. Loss and others, in their early efforts to
fix public attention upon the necessity of establishing a wise and liberal free
school system for Wisconsin, was a brother of Edwin Croswell, a noted editor
of Albany, N. Y., and was a member of the Board of Public Works of Wiscon-
sin in the improvement of Fox River ; represented Sauk County in the Legisla-
ture, in 1850; and was subsequently Consul at St. Petersburg. L. C. D.

342 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

In the Constitutional Convention of 1846, a resolution was
passed early in tlie session for a "provision to be engrafted
into tlie Constitution, making it imperative on the Legislature
to provide the necessary means, by taxation or otherwise, for
placing a common education within the reach of all chil-
dren of the State." An article was incorporated into the Con-
stitution, in most respects similar to the one included in our
present Constitution, adopted in 1848, creating free schools.
Considerable discussion arose in regard to establishing the
office of State Superintendent, some favoring the old system of
"New York, in which the Secretary of Sitate performed the duties
of this office. 'No other provision awakened much interest or
opposition in the body. The time of the Convention was taken
up in the consideration of other exciting questions, such as
banks, negro suffrage, elective judiciary, the death penalty, and
the rights of married women in respect to property.

At an evening session of this Convention, Hon. Henry
Barnard, now in charge of the United States Bureau of Educa-
tion, gave an address upon the advantages of supporting our
public schools by a tax on the property of the State, and upon
the necessity of the office of a State Superintendent of the
schools.

In the second Constitutional Convention, 1848, nearly the
same general topics were under discussion; and some features
in the article on education, included in the Constitution after-
wards adopted, received greater attention. We have failed to
discover proofs of any opposition to the section which provides
that "district schools shall be free, and without charge for
tuition to all children between the ages of four aad twenty
years;" or to a section which requires a sum to be raised by
tax annually for the support of common schools to the amount
at least, of one-half the income of the School Fund. Some
changes were made, admitting the youth over sixteen and un-
der twenty years, dropping the provision for the maintenance
of County Academies and County ISTormal Schools, and making
the basis for the distribution of the school income the number
of children resident in the several towns and cities, instead of

History of Education 343

the actual attendance of these children at school. The ex-
pression "the public schools should be equally free to children
of all religious persuasions," was omitted, for the reason that
there might be children not belonging to any religious persua-
sion, who ought to be educated. The prohibition that "no
book of religious doctrine or belief shall be permitted in any
public school," was abandoned, as it excluded the Bible. Town-
ship libraries were afterwards changed to district libraries. The
old feature of placing the care of the schools in the hands of
Town Inspectors or Comm,ijssioners was converted into the elec-
tion of Town Superintendents, and the ^ve district officers be-
came three, the Trustees being merged into one Director.

Immediately after the adoption of the Second Constitution,
submitted to the people, so great was the demand for radical
changes in the school law that the State Legislature, in 1848,
enacted laws which carried out, in a certain form, the provis-
ions of the article in the Constitution on education. At the
same session of the Legislature, three Commissioners, Hon. M.
Frank, Hon. Charles S. Jordan, and Hon. Charles M. Ba-
ker, were appointed to collate and revise the statutes, which
are familiarly known as those of 1849. Their labors were di-
vided; and among other portions assigned to Col. Frank, was
the law relating to schools. This work was carefully done;
but several features relating to public schools were in direct
conflict with those adopted the previous session of the Legis-
lature. The report of the Commissioners was accepted, and
when the present school law went into operation. May 1, 1849,
there were in vogue in the State three sets of school laws — as
that of 1839 had not been laid aside in all portions, and time
had not been given to supplant that of 1848. The year of
1849 was one of great confusion, as many provisions, in all
these laws were opposed to each other.

One of the most remarkable events in the history of our
State, was the adoption of the free school system by the peo-
ple, and the readiness with which, in most sections, it was put
into operation. The principles involved in this system had
been violently and persistently opposed in other States. Col.

344 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Frank sajs that "prior to the acceptance of the State Con-
stitution, whenever in the south-eastern part of the State, the
measure was introduced of supporting the schools hy taxation
on the assessed property of the districts it encountered the most
determined opposition.'' But when voted upon, scarcely a
prominent voice was raised against it. It is believed that the
question which overshadows all others in the Constitutional
Conventions, so engaged the thoughts of the people that the
free school provision wa^ almost lost sight of in the heated
discussion. The reason for the ready acquiesence is more ob-
vious. The people had become somewhat accustomed toi pay-
ing taxes in the counties, to maintain schools; the income of
the magnificent School Fund could lessen very materially the
burdens of taxation, and the noble utterances of Gov's.
Dodge, Doty, TaUmadge, and Dewey, in their annual mes-
6ages, in favor of the broadest education of the people, had
prepared them to some extent to accept the measure.

The opinion has prevailed quite generally that our school
system was framed after that of the State of New York.
This is a mistake. Our statute laws were copied, even in
their principal headings, their arrangements, their wordings to
a great extent, and of course their substance, from those of
JVTichigan. A few minor provisions were taken from the 'New
York statutes; such as those creating the office of the Town
Siuperintendent, now abolished, and the district library, which
first originated in that State. The other features differed
widely from those of the New York system in very many re-
spects.

The next year after the other State officers were elected,
Hon. Eleazer Eoot, of Waukesha, was chosen State Super-
intendent by the people. The manner of electing this officer
had been determined by the Legislature of that year. He
was nominated by the State Central Committee of both the
Whig and Democratic parties, and elected without opposition.
This first action was in deference, in some degree, to the sen-
timent which prevailed then quite extensively, that the elec-
tion of the State Superintendent should not be connected with

18C9] History of Education 345

the strifes of political parties. In their circular, the Com-
mittees state that Mr. Root is ^'favorably known as a firm
friend and devoted advocate of the cause of education." From
his first Report, issued in 1850, we learn that there were esti-
mated to be 80,445 children, between four and twenty years
of age, in the State, of which 46,136 were attending school;
that the average wages of male teachers per month were
$15.22, and of female teachers $6.92; that there were 704
school-houses — 359 being constructed of logs; and that there
were ninety-six unincorparted private schools.

State University

In Gov. Dodge's message to the First Territorial Legislature,
he recommended the propriety of asking from Congress a do-
nation for the establishment of an institution for the educa-
tion of the youth of the State, and to be governed by the Legis-
lature. This was the first action looking toward the founda-
tion of our State University. Several charters were issued by
the Territory incorporating what was hoped would be such an
institution. But no provisions were made for the final estab-
lishment of the University until the State was organized, for
the reason that the donations of land by Congress for it could
not come into the possession of the State until it was admitted
into the Union. This Institution was finally located at Madi-
son; and by 1850, the Regents had been appointed, and they
had made two reports; Prof. John H. Lathrop, President of
the University of Missouri, had been elected Chancellor; and
Prof. John W. Sterling, still connected with the University,
had opened the Preparatory Department, Peb. 5th, 1849, with
twenty young men as students, in a room in the present High
School Building, then furnished by the city of Madison.

Union or Graded Schools

By 1850, there had been made in the State only one effort
at organizing union or graded schools; and this was at Ke-
nosha. Superintendent Root mentioned in his report such a

346 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol. v

school as in operation at Geneva; but it had not the features
of snch a school. Preparations for establishing similar schools
were then going on in Milwaukee, Janesville, Beloit, Green.
Bay and Sheboygan. During that year, at Manitowoc, an ex-
cellent public school, not a graded one, was conducted for six
months, by Edward Salomon, who had recently arrived in
this country, and has since been Governor. He had charge, a
portion of the year previous, of a private school at Mequon.

The graded ward schools of Kenosha were organized chiefly
by the exertions of Hon. J. G. McMynn, the recent State Sup-
erintendent of Public Instruction. The free school buildings
had been erected between 1846 and 1848. In the winter of
the latter year, Col. McMynn taught a private school in that
city; and in June following he took charge of the public
school in the JSTorth Ward; that of the South Ward was
taught by Prof. Z. C. Graves, an accomplished teacher from
Ohio, and who had labored efficiently in the first Teachers'
Institutes of that State. Both had no experience in grading
schools, and could get access to but little information on the
subject. There resided at the time in Kenosha, Dr. D. W.
Carley, now of Boscobel, who had conducted a graded school
at Palmyra, IST. Y., and who furnished some valuable instruc-
tions. Col. McMynn says, ^^neither Prof. Graves nor my-
self had ever visited a graded school; but we succeeded after
making some mistakes in discovering a plan which others had
known long before, and which now generally prevails.'' This
school became in many respects the model after which many
of the other graded schools in the State were formed.

Blind Asylum

The first charitable State school was incorporated in 1850,
under the name of the Wisconsin Institute for the Education
of the Blind, and was located at Janesville. The others were
organized in subsequent years.

Academies and Colleges

Thirty-six academies and colleges had been incorporated by

History of Education 347

1850; but only nine of them were, at that time, surviving.
Only five of these are now in operation.

Platteville Academy was chartered the earliest of the insti-
tutions now in existence. Previously, in 1837, the Beloit Semi-
nary had obtained an act of incorporation; but a school was
not organized under it till the fall of 1843. It was continued
up to 1850, when the male department was merged into the Pre-
paratory Department of the Beloit College, and the Seminary
became the Beloit Female Seminary, under the charge of Mrs.
S. T. Merrill; but this has ceased to exist. The Southport
Academy, at Kenosha, was chartered a few days after the
Platteville, in 1839. This was the out-growth of a select school
which had been taught the previous year by Rev. M. P. Kin-
ney, D. D., now residing at Pockford, 111; and when it was
opened, he took charge of the school in it, and continued teach-
ing for nearly two years. Mr. Kinney must be regarded as
the first instructor in an incorporated Academy in the State.
Gov. L. P. Harvey was the next principal. He had been con-
nected as tutor two years with the Woodward College, Cin-
cinnati, Ohio, and came to Kenosha as a stranger, seeking em-
ployment, in 1841. He had the supervision of the Academy
until 1844, and gathered together a respectable number of
students, though not enough to make his employment very re-
munerative. Most of his scholars studied the common Eng-
lish branches ; a few the elements of Latin. After he left, the
institution went down.

While the Platteville Academy was first chartered in 1839,
it did not commence working until 1842, and then under a
new act of incorporation, which was obtained the same year.

The first building was erected immediately, and was occu-
pied by both the Congregational Church and the Academy.
The meetings of religious societies were held in nearly all the
first edifices erected in the State for public, private and incor-
porated schools. The first principal at Platteville was R«v. A.
M. Dixon, a graduate of Illinois College, and recently a pastor
at Trempealeau. Afterwards Rev. George F. Magoun, D. D.,
now President of Iowa College, taught here. In the fall of

348 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. ^

1846, Hou). J. L. Pickard, a graduate of Bowdoin College,
Maine, and for several years the State Superintendent of our
State, was engaged as principal. Mr. Pickard states, "at the
time of my going to PlatteVille, the public schools throughout
the Lead Region were in a low condition; houses were poor;^
teachers poorly qualified as a general rule; and their wages
very low. Female teachers received $1.00 to $1.60 per week,
and male teachers $10.00 to $15.00 per month. Between
1846 and 1850, considerable interest was awakened; and con-
ventions and institutes were held at Galena, Dubuque, Hazel
Grreen and Platteville. A teachers' class was organized in the
Academy; and with better qualifications came better wages,
and much more interest on the part of the people. The pub-
lic schools at Platteville were in a better condition than in any
other part of the Lead Region.'' Hon. H. Robbins, now one
of the Kormal School Regents, labored efficiently both as a
teacher and a district officer, in improving the schools of
Platteville.

The Prairieville Academy, at Waukesha, was chartered in
1841, converted into the Carroll College in 1846, but restored
in 1849. Both these institutions owe their origin largely to
the efforts of Gov. A. W. Randall and E. D. Clintom Si-
las Chapman, Esq., of Milwaukee, for many years the Secre-
tary of the ISTormal Board of Regents, entered the Academy
as the first principal in the summer of 1841. The first build-
ing was stone; but it not being fully completed, the first term
was kept in the Congregational Church. Mr. Chapman re-
mained only one year, as the compensation was not sufficient;
and then he moved to Milwaukee, where he took charge of
the "High School,'' an Academy, for a year. But the Acade-
my at Waukesha was not long in operation. The charter for
the College was obtained by Hon. E. Root, and the Ereshmau
class was formed in 1846, under the direction of Prof. Ster-
ling, of the State University, who continued in the College
one year, taking the class through their studies, and receiving
for his labors the salary of $80. This is one of the many ex-
amples we might furnish in proof of the purely missionary

1869] History of Education 349

zeal of the early teachers in the State. The Institution waB
for a number of years afterwards under the Presidency of Rev.
John A. Savage, D. D., since deceased.

The Catholic College at Sinsinawa Mound was incorporated
in 1848, and was under the management, for many years, of
Father Mazzuchelli, who formerly superintended the Cath-
olic Mission School among the Indians at Green Bay. This
Institution, together with the Eemale Academy at Benton,
twelve miles from the Mound, were established by Father
Mazzuchelli, from the means which were furnished him by
a wealthy sister, in Milan, Italy. This school was converted,
some years afterwards, into the Saint Clara Female Academy.
Beloit College is the result of the action of the Convention
which the Presbyterian and the Congregational churches of
this State and E'orthem Illinois held in 1845. In the fall of
1847, the first class was organized, and placed temporarily
under the instruction of Prof. S. T. Merrill, then principal
of the Beloit Seminary. Two of its present professors. Rev.
Joseph Emerson and J. J. Bushnell, were appointed the
following year; and in 1849, Rev. A. L. Chapin, D. D., was
elected President, which office he still holds. This Institution
was in full operation by 1860.

Lawrence University was founded in 1848, under a liberal
donation by Hon. Amos. A. Lawrence, of Boston, Mass. It
was placed under the patronage and control of the Methodist
denomination. The Institution was located at Appleton, be-
fore a single house was erected in the place; and it began
with thirty-five students. The charter being for an Institute,
in 1850 the school was incorporated as a College.

Milton College was opened as a select school w'ith acad-
mic facilities in 1844, as the result of the enterprise of
Hon. Joseph Goodrich, a pioneer settler at Milton. Rev. S.
S. Bicknell, a graduate of Dartmouth College, and now liv-
ing at Fort Atkinson, was the first most prominent teaeher.
In 1848, the Institution was incorporated as an Academy;
and in the following year. Prof. Jonathan Allen, now Presi-
dent of Alfred University, N. Y., had charge of the school

350 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. ^

The Institution worked effectually in qualifying district school
teachers.*

Conclusion

It was my design, when I began the examination of this sub-
ject, to furnish in close review the whole early education history
of the State ; but to arrange properly, and present the materials
which have accumulated on my hands, would, to my own sur-
prise, occupy too much of your time, on which I fear I have
already trespassed. I have, therefore, confined myself to the
main outlines of the formation period in our State history.
Other particulars of this period deserve notice, such as the
difference between the policy of France and Great Britain on
the one hand, and that of our own Government on the other,
in reference to encouraging education among the settlers of this
Western country, by the liberal donations of lands in their
charters and grants. The influence of our School Fund upon
the inhabitants of the Territory, might be more fully discussed.
The efficient labors of other noble and self-sacrificing teachers,
whose power in moulding our character and our institutions,
descends to us like the waters of a noiseless stream, could with
profit be mentioned. But I forbear.

I have traced up to the organization of our State, the origin
and progress of our schools among the French traders and
pioneers; and at the American military posts established at
their principal stations, among the hardy and stalwart miners
in the Lead Kegion and among the industrious and intelligent
settlers from the East — the bulk of our population. These
three classes of people have each contributed, more or less, by
forming prominent schools, or by introducing systems of pub-

♦The Hon. W. C. Whitford, the writer of this paper, has been many years
at the head of the Institution at Milton, both in its Academic and Collegiate
character, and has rendered the public good service as an eflBcient and popula.r
educator. He was born in West Edmeston, Otsego county, N. Y., May 5th, 1828,
and fitted himself for College at Brookfield Academy and De Ruyter Institute,
New York, and then taught one term at Milton Academy in the winter of
1850-51, and two years as Principal of Shiloh Academy, N. J. Entering the
senior class at Union College he graduated in 1853, and then spent three years
at the Union Theological Seminary, New I'ork City. Returning to Milton, in
this State, in the spring of 1856, and after serving a pastorate of two years,
he was placed at the head of the well-known literary Institution there in 1858,
where he has labored with great success for ten years. His services in the
Legislature have been particularly directed to the great Interests of popular
education.

History of Education 351

lie instruction which have been tested by other States and
found useful, towards shaping and vitalizing the great cause of
education among us. Thus, from many sources, we derived
the materials which our people, in forming a State, collected
and combined into a harmonious and effective whole. In this
they conformed to the rude but beautiful idea, which the early
Indian tribes conceived of the work accomplished by our princi-
pal river, from which the State is named ; for as they dwelt on
the thousand brooks and rivulets which in the Korthem half of
the State converge toward our central valley, they called the
river flowing through it, and receiving its supplies from these
small streams, Wisconsin^ which, in the language of Chippo-
waSj means the "gathering of waters." >

35 2 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. y

History of School Supervision
in Wisconsin

[Address of Rev. W. C. Whitford, President of Milton College, before
the State Teachers' Convention at Milwaukee, July, 1868.] i

At the request of your Executive Committee that I should
present a paper on some theme connected with the progress of
the schools in our State, I have veaitured to write on the one
under consideration, as furnishing facts of general interest;
and I shall be more than pleased, if my treatment of it shall
meet with your approbation. I do not desire to trace from
the beginning the history of the care and control of our schools,
for the sake of exciting the curiosity, or indulging our rever-
ence for former ideas and institutions. Our inquiry is in re-
gard to the origin and the effects of our school laws and usages,
that we may better understand our present system of school
supervision. A traveler in crossing a river, not well known
by himself^ naturally asks, where are its sources, what is its
length, and what are the general features of its whole course?

The search, indeed, would be interesting if we should pass
beyond the genesis of the schools of our State, and find the
germs of our ovni educational organization and management in

^This paper appeared in the Milwaukee News, August 12, 1868, witli this
editorial commendation : "All concerned in the educational affairs of Wiscon-
sin will be deeply interested in the Address of Rev. Mr. Whitford, of Milton
College, delivered before the late State Convention of Teachers, and published
in our columns to-day. The Address is a concise historical statement of the
progress of the educational movement in our State from the earliest settlement
of Wisconsin Territory until now, together with a brief exposition of the pre-
vailing system of public education as established by the laws of the State."

After a brief resume of the ante-Territorial school facilities — or, rather want
of them — discussed more fully in the preceding paper, Mr. Whitford enters into
« succinct history of the introduction of the free school system into Wisconsin,
and of the principal changes that have taken place in the administration of
the school laws of the Territory and State; and he has accomplished his pur-
pose with an evident care, research, candor and good judgment, that merits the
acknowledgment of the friends of educational progress in Wisconsin. L. C. D.

History of Education 353

the earliest history of some of the 'New England Colonies.
The labor would not be fruitless, if we should mark distinctly
the gradual growth, during the two hundred years, of what is
really the American system of schools, and notice in what
communities, and under what variety of circumstances, it has
attained its present form and strength. But my purpose does
not lead me in that direction.

As might be etxpected, our first schools were opened in
private families, and the task of hiring teachers, ascertaining
their qualifications, and supervising their schools, was per-
formed by the heads of these families. Where society is rude
and partly civilized, or where the people do not live compactly
together as in our pioneer settlements, we should look to the
most intelligent homes for the origin of our best institutions.
Children were taught by regular instructors in some families
of the French settlers. Pierre Grignon started a school in
his own house at Green Bay, in 1791, engaging James Por-
lier as teacher. Other families in this place adopted, with-
out doubt, the same course. Similar cases occurred in the
early history of Prairie Du Chien. In the annals of this
French settlement, a Daniel Curtis is mentioned as teaching
in the family of Joseph Rolette. In many of the oldest
commimities made up of the American population from the
Eastern States, you can now find persons who received at such
schools their first instruction in the common and higher
branches of education.

The next schools were established at the military posts in
the State, which were three in number : Fort Howard, at Green
Bay^ Fort Crawford, at Prairie Du Chien, and Fort Winne-
bago, near Portage City. The commanders of these posts had
the supervision of the schools. Usually they engaged the chap-
lains appointed by the Government, to instruct the chijdren who
belonged to the officers and the soldiers, and sometimes to prom-
inent citizens living in the vicinity of the forts.. Kev. Richard
F. Cadle had the charge of the post schools at Green Bay and
Prairie Du Chien between 1832 and 1840, while acting as
chaplain. Other individuals were occasionally employed. A

35+ Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

Sergeant by the name of Keeseden taught in Fort Crawford
as early as 1817, and received for his labors fifteen cents per
day above his regular army wages of $5.00 a month. Keports
of these schools were j)robably furnished the General Govern-
ment by the commanding officers. We learn that the over-
sight of these schools was strict, and the instruction most
thorough.

Private schools for children and young people were next
formed. These began by several families in a place uniting
together to maintain them by subscription or tuition fees.
Generally some person was selected to secure a teacher and a
room in a private house, and have some responsibility for the
management of the school. Sometimes a dwelling was erected
for the purpose, and some kind of organization was effected for
hiring and supporting the teacher. Very often both the dwell-
ing and the organization were the results of the efforts of local
religious societeis. Private schools were opened at Prairie Du
Chi en as early as 1817, at Green Bay, in 1824, at Mineral
Point, in 1830, at Platteville, in 1834, at Kenosha, in 1835,
and at Milwaukee and Sheboygan in the winter of 1835-6.
When Wisconsin was organized into a Territory in 1836, there
were at least eight such ischools in operation, and two hundred
and seventy-five pupils attending them. Since that time, in
numerous instances in those places where the school law had not
taken effect, these schools were opened and maintained. They
became the forerunners of our public schools, introducing
teachers, creating an interest in education among the people,
and laying the basis for the methods of school oversight after-
ward adopted.

Another class of schools was early organized in Wisconsin,
viz: The mission schools among the Indian tribes. The
charge of these in a single instance was in the hands of the
Government ; the others were under the control of the religious
societies which established and supported them. The first
mission school began in 1823, at Green Bay, by the special
efforts of Eev. Eleazer Williams, who pretended afterwards
to be the Dauphin of France. It was under the direction of the

History of Education 355

Episcopal Missionary Society of this country. Hon A. G.
Ellis, now of Stevens' Point, taught in the school for a num-
ber of years. Rev. Richard F. Cadle, acted as Superintend-
fflit from 1827 to 1832. At one time there were in the school
129 children of full and mixed Indian blood, representing ten
different tribes. They were received between the ages of four
and fourteen years, and were taught habits of industry, the
elements of a good English education, and a knowledge of the
Christian religion. Six teachers were sometimes employed. In
1828 commodious buildings were erected at the cost of $9,000.
In the branch missions, axaong the Oneidas, at Duck Creek,
and the Monomonees at I^eenah, but little or nothing was ef-
fected. This school was in operation for sixteen years, and
influenced, in many respects, all the other educational move-
ments in the vicinity of Green Bay.

Before noticing other schools, more should be said in regard
to the labors and character of Mr. Cadle. It seems he had
the fullest confidence of the Society which endeavored to build
up at Green Bay a large and successful mission; and he is
mentioned by those in the State who knew him, in terms of
the highest esteem. Modest and well educated, he was ener-
getic, self-denying and devoted. Opposed and persecuted in
his missionary work, he toiled the more earnestly, and was be-
loved by his school. After laboring among the Indians in an-^
other field, acting for several years as chaplain and schoolmas-
ter at two of our military posts, he returned East, and died
sometime since in the State of New York.

!N'ear Green Bay, a Catholic mission was formed in 1830. It
was aided somewhat by the Government and the Monomonee
tribe, among whom the school was maintained. It was con-
tinued four years under the charge of Rev. Samuel Mazzu-
chelli, who was a Jesuit and an Italian priest, zealous and
talented, and toiled with imremitting ardor, though with no
great success in his position. Besides his gigantic missionary
efforts afterward in the state of Iowa, in the vicinity of Galena,
Illinois, and in the southwestern part of our State, he founded

the Eemale College at Sinsinawa Mound, and the Academy at
24

356 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Benton; and by his oversight and instruction, they became
flourishing institutions. He died four years since in the
midst of his labors, honored and revered by many friends.

For a number of years the Government sustained a school
among the Winnebagoes, in accordance with a treaty made with
them in 1832, which required the school to be kept at or near
Prairie Du Chien. It was afterwards located on the west side
of the Mississippi river, in Iowa, and placed under the super^
vision of Rev. David Lowry, an accomplished and enterpris-
ing man.

These educational efforts aided in attracting to our State
some of our most useful citizens, and influenced in many ways
all our earliest public and business enterprises.

When Wisconsin was organized into a Territory, by itself in
1836, the laws of the Michigan Territory, with which it had
beetn connected for eighteen years, were, by an organic act of
Congress, declared in full force in the Territory. The school
laws continued as such until 1839, with some slight modifica-
tions made by the L^slature of 1837. To no other circum-
stance is our public school system so much indebted, as to
this, for its peculiar provisions, and especially for its methods
of school supervision in all departments in respect to the dis-
trict, the town, and the State. The prominent features of the
Michigan school law were retained among all the changes in
our Territorial history, and were subsequently engrafted into
our State Constitution.

By the terms of this law, each district elected three school
ofiicers — a Clerk, a Treasurer, and a Collector, and as a boar('
were called Directors. They selected the sites for sehool
houses, hired teachers, levied and collected the taxes for the
erection of the houses, and the support of the schools. Each
town had two sets of school officers. Commissioners and In-
spectors. The former, three in number, held their office for
three years, divided the township into districts, called the first
Bchool meetings, had charge of the school section, leasing it
when it could be done, and applying the rents for the support
of common schools. The Inspectors, ^ve in number, were

1869] History of Education 357

elected annually, to examine and license the teachers, aiod
visit and inspect the schools. At the head of the State De-
partment of Instruction, a State Superintendent was appointed
by the Governor. The last provision was not enforced during
our Territorial existence.

The first school district in the State was organized under
thifi Michigan school law, in Milwaukee, in the fall of 1836.
This was about the same time that the Territory of Wisconsin
held its first Legislative session. The first school of this dis-
trict, and, therefore, the first public school in the State, was
kept by a Mr*. West in the fall of 1836, in a framed school
house, still standing in the 2d ward of the city, and now known
as E'o. 371 Third street. Will it not be a privilege for the
teachers of this Association to make a pilgrimage to this
humble temple, the first erected in the State for the accommo-
dation of our noble common schools ?

In 1839, this Territorial school law was revised, and the
oflfice of Town Commissioners was abolished and their duties
were transferred to the Inspectors, who had bestowed upon them;
the additional power to listen to complaints against teachers
and discharge incompetent ones, to keep the school houses in
repair, and to make returns of the number of scholars in the
town to the Coimty Commissioners. It was the duty of
the last named officers to levy a school tax on the whole
county, and to appoint Inspectors in the towns which refused
or neglected to choose them. The name of district officers was
changed to that of Trustees, who could i perform for the dis-
trict the duties assigned to the Inspectors in examining and
licensing teachers, repairing the school houses, and report-
ing the number of scholars.

Within the two years following, the office of Commissioners
was revived, and that of Inspectors dropped; all their duties
being enjoined upon the former. More complete directions
for forming and managing school districts were adopted. The
Commissioners were required to listen to appeals from any per-
son aggrieved at the action of a district, and pass a decision
thereon, which should be final. They made reports each year

358 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

to the Secretary of the Territory, giving in detail the number
of school districts in each town, the number of scholars
and teachers, the length of time school had been main-
tained in each district, and the amount of money raised
by tax, and paid out for school purposes. A neglect of this
duty was accompajiied with heavy penalties.

Provision was made for five district officers — a Clerk, a Col-
lector, and three Trustees, who were elected annually. It was
the duty of the Clerk to make yearly a list of the heads of the
families in the district, and the number of children in each
family between the ages of four and sixteen, and to file a copy
of said list in the offijoe of the Clerk of the Board of County
Commissioners, and deliver another to the School Commission-
ers of the town. These duties were afterward transferred to
the Trustees, who performed all the official labors of the dis-
trict, except keeping the records, and collecting the taxes.
They engaged the teachers, had the custody of the school prop-
erty, made out the tax lists and rate bills, and met the ex-
penses of the schools.

The Coimty Commissioners, besides receiving the Est of
families and children from each district, apportioned, annu-
ally, all moneys in the County Treasury which had been ap-
propriated to the common schools.

This code of school laws remained in force, with some slight
amendments until the State Constitution was adopted in 1848.
Up to 1841 so many changes were made in the minutia of the
system, that great confusion was caused in the management of
tiie school affairs in the town and in the district, and the peo-
ple were justly dissatisfied. So strong was this feeling, that no
important modification was permitted to be introduced •until
the organic law of the State was itself remodeled, seven years
subsequently, though it was well known that radical deficiences
existed in the system.

Previous to the adoption of the State Constitution, the su-
pervisory mauagement of the public schools was discussed in
various portions of the State. Defects were pointed out, aud
remedies were demanded. Pive school district officers, subject

History of Education 359

to be changed each year, made the care of the school cumber-
some and uncertain. No real uniformity or permanency in any
plan which the district might adopt, could be assured. The
utility of electing a Town Superintendent in the place of Town
Commissioners, was considered. It was held that one persoia,
with all the responsibility upon him, would be more efficient
than three, and give greater unity to the work. As early as
1841 a petition from Kacine county was received by the Legis-
lature asking for the creation of the office of State Superintend-
ent. In 1846 a bill passed one branch of the Legislature, pro-
viding for the appointment of this officer, but was lost in the
other. Educational conventions were held at Madison, Mineral
Point and Milwaukee ; and the need of an official head in the
Department of Education was strongly insisted upon. Com-
mittees in the Legislature submitted reports upon the subject.
In both Constitutional Conventions two parties appeared; one
favoring the establishment of the office, and the other the con-
ferring of the duties of the position upon the Secretary of
State. Hon. Henry Barnard addressed the members of the
first Convention in regard to the advantages of the office of a
State Superintendent, and presented the outlines of a system
of schools supervised by such an officer, which, it is believed,
was adopted by the Convention, and was subsequently embod-
ied in the State Constitution. It was found that but little
harmony existed in the operation of the school laws. Differ-
ent systems of instruction and government prevailed in differ-
ent counties. There was no general and efficient method for coi •
lecting school statistics. There was no ultimate authority to
determine all matters of difficulty or dispute, and to enforce
the school laws. There were no means by which any informa-
tion in regard to the condition and the wants of the schools,
and the opinions and efforts of educators, could be published
and disseminated throughout the State. It was argued that
some prominent officer should travel through all the organized
counties, visiting schools, encouraging and counseling teachers,
organizing educational associations, and correcting, as far as

360 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

possible, existing defects in the system and management of
schools.

The present school law went into operation May 1st, 1849.
In the Constitution, it was provided that "the supervision of
public instruction shall be vested in a State Superintendent,
and such other officers as the Legislature shall direct." The
Superintendent should be elected by the people, and should
not receive over $1,200 salary. The Legislature adopted the
provisions, which required that he shaU have the general
oversight of the common schools, and shall visit throughout
the State as far as practicable, inspect schools, address the
people, communicate with teachers and school officers, and
secure a uniformity and an improvement in the instruction
and discipline of the schools. He shall recommend the intro-
duction of the most approved text books, advise in the selec-
tion of works for school district libraries, and prescribe the
regulations for the management of these libraries. He shall
attend to the publication of the school laws, accompanied with
proper explanations, and distribute copies of these in all por-
tions of the State. He shall decide upon all appeals made to
him from school meetings and Town Superintendents. He
shall apportion all school moneys distributed each year by the
State among the towns and cities, and submit to the Legislature
an annual report, containing an abstract of all the reports re-
ceived from the Clerks of the County Board of Supervisors,
giving accounts of the condition of the common schools, and
the estimates of expenditures of the school money, and pre-
senting plans for the better organization of the schools, and
such other matters as he may deem expedient to commu-
nicate.

From the "New York system of common schools, was bor-
rowed the idea of establishing the office of Town Sniperinten-
dent It was the duty of this officer to divide his town into
a convenient number of school districts and regulate and alter
thereafter the boundaries of such districts, to receive and appor-
tion among the districts all town school moneys, to transmit
to the County Board of Supervisors an annual report of all

1869] History of Education 361

matters connected with, the districts, to examine and license
teachers in his town, and annul their certificates when thought
desired by himself, and to visit the schools and examine in-
to the progress of the pupils in learning, and into the good or-
der of the schools as to the government thereof, and the course
of studies to he pursued therein. He received $1.00 per day
for every day actually and necessarily spent in his work.

The school district officers were elected each year, and were
oalled by the old title Directors. The former Collector was
named Treasurer, the three Trustees were merged into a Direc-
tor, and the Clerk became again the most responsible officer.
He kept the district records, acted usually as librarian, fur-
nished school registers, made annual reports of the condition
of the district to the Town Superintendent, gave notice of the
meetings, and engaged qualified teachers with the coinsent of
either of the other officers. This work he performed gratui-
tously.

To any one who has taken the pains to examine the school
laws of the several States of the Union, it will at first seem
somewhat surprising that the same general principles and
methods in regard to school management run through them
all. The reason for this uniformity lies in the fact that the ex-
periments tried in one State are usually observed by all the
others, and any improvements in vogue in one are, after a
while, adopted in most cases by the rest. So when Wisconsin
became a State, she fashioned after the prevailing system her
mode of school supervision, which had been tried in some re-
spects and improved during the twelve years of her Territorial
career, and it is not strange that she accepted some defects
with the many excellencies of her public school policy. Since
the organization of the State, only a few changes have taken
place in the supervisory departments of the State and the' school
district; but more and radical ones in the town. In 1854, the
State Superintendent was authorized to appoint an Assistant
Superintendent, who performed such duties as the principal
prescribed, which have been usually those belonging to the of-
fice work, and received $800 salary. His compensation was

362 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. y

afterwards raised to $1,000, and in 1865 to $1,500. In tlie be-
ginning, the Legislature by special acts in each year, allowed
the traveling expenses of the State Superintendent; but since
1853 $600, and since 1866 $1,000, have been annually appro-
priated by law for this object. For ten years p;revious to 1866,
$600 were paid out, according to a general statute, each year,
for clerk hire in his office, and since that time $1,000 have
been paid. For the first ten years the State Superintendent
received only $1,000 salary, but since then $1,200, 'the full
amount allowed by the Constitution. Most of the time since
the State University was established, he has been ex-officio sl
member of its Board of Regents; and since the IN^ormal
School law was passed, an active Regent on the Board created
thereby. He has given efficient aid, also, to other valuable
educational enterprises, such as the State Teachers' Associa-
tion, the publication of educational periodicals and Teachers'
Institutes held by Town and County Superintendents, by
societies of teachers, and by an agent of the Normal Eegents.

In the school districts, the officers are now elected each for
three years in accordance with a law enacted in 1858. In ad-
dition to the care and custody of the school property, the Dis-
trict Boards have been required to supervise the schools under
their charge, inspect the condition and progress of the pupils,
consult with the teachers in reference to instruction and disci-
pline.

The office of Town Superintendent ceased to exist January
1, 1862 ; and the duties in examining and licensing teachers,
visiting and inspecting schools, were transferred to the County
Superintendents, whose office was established at the same time;
the duties in the formation and alteration of school districts, to
Town Supervisors; and the duties in making annual reports
of items in regard to the districts, such as length of time school
had been taught, amount of public moneys received, and all
moneys expended, the district tax and the number of children
taught in the district, to the Town Clerk. For seven years, at
least, previous to the abolition of this office, serious objections
were urged against its efficiency. Kev. A. C. Barry, State

1869] History of Education 363

Superintendent, in liis annual report of 1855, states that in
many towns it is next to impossible to find a person really
<jualified for the office, and, in most cases, the duties of the
Town Superintendent are not faithfully performed, because of
the lack of interest, or from an inadequate compensation. He
discussed the effect which the creation of the office of Co'unty
Superintendent would have upon the teachers and the patrons
of the schools. In his opinion, this office should not be sub-
stituted for that of the Town Superintendent, but be correla-
tive to it. Hon. J. L. Pickard argues in his first annual re-
port, as State Superintendent, in 1860, that the system of
Town Superintendency had, not the confidence, nor the sup-
port of the people, nor sufficient merit to secure that confi-
dence and support. Under it, the inspection of teachers and
schools was declared to be nearly worthless. To the influence
of Mr. Pickard, are our schools mainly indebted for the sub-
stitution of the County for the Town Superintendents, as that
office was created under his administration. The reasons for
the charge were set forth by the principal educational men in
the State, as providing better supervision of the schools by se-
curing the full time and the undivided energies of a man com-
petent for the business; as raising the standard of teachers by
more thorough and public examinations; as arousing among
the people a greater interest in schools by establishing County
Associations and Teachers' Institutes, and as introducing uni-
formity and harmony in the educational efforts of the State.
The experience of nearly seven years has shown that this office
has also tended to improve the school houses and the school
furniture; to assist in bringing about a better classification of
both studies and scholars in our schools; to increase the sala-
ries and the influence of teachers; and to establish the most
approved methods of teaching and discipline.

There has been in operation for many years in the State a
system of school government which has been adopted by most
of our cities and many of our large villages, and. which unfor-
tunately was not for several years connected with the general
supervision of schools, and which has not to this day, in all

364 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

respects, placed itself like the district school under the control
of the State authority. Attention was called to this fact by
Superintendent Barry in 1856, and reports from the Boards
of Education of these cities and villages are now required to
be made yearly to the Superintendents of the counties in which
they are situated. The first attempt at the formation of this
independent system was made at Kenosha as early as 1845.
Among other features it was provided that three Superintend-
ents should be elected ^^to examine into the condition of the
school at least once in every three months; to determine the
qualifications of the teachers employed; to direct the arrange-
ment and classification of the scholars in the several depart-
ments of study; to prescribe text books, and to have a gen-
eral supervision over the government and discipline of the
school." Up to this time no such powers had been conferred
upon any other school officer in the Territory, but since 1849
they have been granted in many instances to the Superintend-
ets of city schools. They have been found necessary to the
proper grading and classification of these schools. In most
places the work of examining and assigning to their classes the
scholars has been transferred from the Superintendents to the
Principals of the schools, on the ground that the latter were
better prepared to execute it. Shortly after the system of
graded schools at Kenosha was established, one person was
designated as the Superintendent of the place, and Mr. John
B. Jilson filled this office for a long time. Eacine, Milwaukee,
Beloit, Janesville, Madison, Sheboygan and Waukesha soon
followed the example of Kenosha.

Since the organization of the Department of Public Instruc-
tion, eight citizens have been elected to the office of State
Superintendent. The first was Hon. Eleazer Root, of Wau-
kesha, who was nominated by the State Central Committee of
both the Whig and Democratic parties, and was chosen with-
out opposition. His first term was one year in length. He
was re-elected, his second term being two years long. During
his administration, besides issuing a publication of the school
laws, with notes and instructions, and accompanied with suit-

History of Education 365

able forms for conducting proceedings under them by the
different school officers, and besides carrying into effect the
provisions of these school laws and systematizing their opera-
tions, he gave much attention to the formation of graded
schools in different parts of the State. He had been at the
head of flourishing Female Seminaries in Virginia and Mis-
souri, had taught for over a year at Waukesha, and was a
member of the second Constitutional Convention, and drew up
the article on education which was adopted by that Conven-
tion as a portion of the State Constitution. As a Superinten-
dent, he labored with great zeal, and performed much to give
impulse and direction to the educational interests of the State.

He was succeeded in 1852 by Hon. Azel P. Ladd, of
Shullsburg, who, during the two years he occupied the office,
directed his attention largely to the improvement of the in-
struction imparted in our public schools. He made an ineffect-
ual attempt to modify entirely our school laws. His reports
were well written and able.

Hon. H. A. Wright, of Prairie Du Chien, was the third
State Superintendent. He died before the term of his office ex-
pired, in the thirtieth year of his age. He was a young man
of most agreeable manners and fine abilities. A lawyer by
profession, he had held the position of County Judge, had ed-
ited a paper at the place of his residence, and had been a mem-
ber of both branches of the Legislature. In the only report he
presented, he deemed it a bad policy to introduce any import-
ant changes in the school law, and gave quite full directions
for the improved construction of school houses.

Kev. A. C. Barry, of Eaxiine, was appointed to fill out the
term to which Judge Wright had been elected. At its close,
he was chosen State Superintendent for the two subsequent
years. He originated the plan of publishing the reports of
other school officers in the State in connection with his own
annual report, a plan which has been followed, particularly
since the election of County Superintendents. He labored
with ardor to impress upon the people the value of an educa-
tion, and to elevate the general condition of our schools. He

366 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

still resides in the State, has been a member of the Assembly,
was a popular chaplain in the army during the Rebellion, and
is an influential clergyman in the Universalist denomination.

Hon Lyman C. Draper, of Madison, was Superintendent in
the years 1858-59. He has been for many years the efficient
Secretary of the State Historical Society. He procured, dur-
ing his term, the passage of an excellent law for establishing
Town School Libraries. He wrote largely upon this subject
in his reports, and awakened much interest in it in different
parts of the State. After a fund of $88,784.78 had accumu-
lated for the benefit of these libraries, the law was very un-
wisely repealed in 1861, and the money transferred to the
school and the general funds. It is due to this enterprise, that
this money should be refunded by the State, and this law re-
vived.*

Prof. J. L. Pickard, of Platteville, succeeded Mr. Draper.
He was three times elected to the office, and resigned during
the first year of his third term. He had taught in other States,
had acted as the popular principal of the Platteville Academy
for fourteen years, and had taken a deep interest in the educa-
tional affairs of the State. His administration was vigorous
and successful. Besides securing the establishment of the office
of County Superintendents, as has already been noticed, he
made special efforts to enlarge school districts by the consolida-
tion of smaller ones, and to inspire the teachers with a greater
interest in their work.

Col. J. G. McMynn was the next Superintendent by ap-
pointment, and subsequently by election. Chiefly by his ex-
ertions, the first graded schools in the State were organized at
Kenosha and Racine, and became widely known; and the

♦There was probably no law of its importance ever more fully discussed, or
passed with greater unanimity, by any Legislative body, than the Township
Library Law of 1859 — creating a Library Fund by setting apart for that pur-
pose one-tenth of the School Fund income, and imposing one-tenth of a mill
tax on the taxable property of the State. But the great war tornado of
1861 burst upon us, and the Legislature, without due reflection, we fear, re-
pealed the Library Law, when no single petition had ever come up from the
people asking for such action ; and that portioa of the accrued Library Fund
which had come from the School Fund, was restored to that source, and the
remainder was placed in the General Fund, to aid, as was proclaimed at the
time, in equipping our first regiments for the war. Now that the war is over,
and most of the State war expenses have been refunded by the General Gov-
ernment, it is due to the noble cause of popular education, that the Town-
ship Library Law be restored, or a new one enacted, carrying into effect the
beneficent purposes contemplated by the friends of education throughout th«
State. L. C. D.

History of Education 367

State Teachers' Association was formed fifteen years ago. He
has labored with energy and a sound judgment in other edu-
cational movements in the State. He was an officer in one of
the Wisconsin regiments in the late war. His Super'intend-
ency of schools is distinguished for the passage of the present
Normal School law, a measure which has been demanded from
our earliest Territorial history, and for the location of five
Normal Schools in the State.

The present incumbent, Hon. A. J. Craig, of Madison, en-
tered upon the duties of his office at the beginning of the
year. He formerly taught in one of the schools of Milwau-
kee, edited the Educational Journal for several years, has been
a member of the Assembly, and was Assistant State Superin-
tendent, under Prof. Pickard and Col. McMynn.

The limits of my article will not allow me to mention in de-
tail the history of the supervision of our State University, our
benevolent State institutions, our Normal ScTiool efforts, and
the incorporated Academies and Colleges of the State, which
have never been fully connected with our public system of
schools.

We should be glad to notice how certain questions, which
are now agitating the minds of teachers in the State, have
been discussed by district school officers, Superintendents of
cities, towns, counties, and the State.

The evils of the truancy and irregular attendance of the
pupils of our public schools, and the subject of the selection
of text-books for the schools by the State, or by the several
towns, were considered very early in our State history; but
no measures in regard to them were adopted. The precise
work to be accomplished by our Normial School instruction,
has many times been described. For ten years the merits of
the township system of school government, embracing. a cen-
tral high school in each town, have been urged upon the atten-
tion of the people.

At the present time much hostility is manifested against
the system of County Superintend ency. For the past two
winters, direct attempts have been made in the Legislature to

368 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

annul the law creating the system, and this was prevented at
the last session only by the most vigorous exertions. The
valid objection to the system lies in the fact that it has
deprived the schools of a local town supervision — an authority
nearer to the districts and the people. In order to save the
county system, which is doing an incalculable good, it is
apparent that concessions will have to be made in favor of a
town supervising officer, who can oftener visit and inspect
schools, and come into closer relations with the teachers and
the scholars while engaged in their work.

James Duane Doty 369

Life and Services of J. D. Doty

By Gen. Albert G. Ellis

In compliance with the request of the State Historical So^
ciety, made on the 2(i January, 1866, that I should prepare
for its archives "a paper on the Life and Public Services of the
late Hon. James Duane Doty, and their relation to the History
of Wisconsin," I respectfully submit the following :

I shall hardly be expected to give a detailed history of all
his acts and doings; as, while he was Judge of the U. S.
District Court, for Michigan, west of the Lakes ; as a member
of the Legislative Council of Michigan from the upper dis-
trict; as Delegate to Congress from the Territory of Wis-
consin; as Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs; as
Commissioner for treating with the Indian Tribes on the Up-
per Mississippi ; as a member of the Convention for forming a
Constitution and State Government; as a member of Con-
gress from the 3d District of this State ; and finally as Super-
intendent of Indian Affairs, and then Governor of Utah,
where he died; to do all which would be writing a volume
— a history of Wisconsin — instead of "a paper." Having
on the 30th June, 1865, soon after the death of Gov. Doty,
written and published in the Pinery newspaper of this place,
a somewhat extended article, I can now do but little more than
repeat, with some amplification, what I then said; in doing
Avhich, at the distance I am away from records, libraries, files
of State newspapers, &c., I shall have to draw almost entirely
on fading recollections of events long since past, and cannot
tlierefore, hope to be as accurate as might be wished.

The distinguished subject of our narrative was a native of
Salem, Washington County, ^N'ew York, where he was born

370 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

in 1799. In the year 1818, he settled at Detroit, Michigan,
where the writer first became acquainted with him in the
Spring of 1822, nearly forty-five years ago. A young lawyer
of good repute, he was the next year, 1819, admitted to the
Supreme Court of that Territory; and was the same year
promoted rapidly to places of public trust — ^being appoin-
ted Secretary of the Legislative Council, and Clerk of the
Court.*

Although young — only twenty-three — when I first became
acquainted with him, and quite juvenile in appearance, he was
decidedly popular with the people, and had already attracted
the attention of Gov. Cass, who took much interest in all
young men of character and talent. He had a fine address,
was of a sociable and genial disposition — thereby winning the
good will, respect and friendship of his acquaintances.

Gov. Cass, in 1S20, made his fam.ous tour of the Great
Lakes, and the Mississippi to its sources, traveling a distance
of four thousand miles with his party, in five bark canoes.
Jfr. Doty was selected by the Governor to command one of
the birch flotilla; C. C. Trowbridge and John H. Kiuzio
each having charge of ano-ther. The trip from Detroit to
Mackinaw and the Saiilt St. Marie consumed nearly 90 dayp,
and was one of great difficulty and peril. It was on this oc-

* Charles C. Trowlirid,ffe. Eso.. of Detroit, in a letter to the Secretary of the
So'^'e^^v. f 'rnlsbps tbpse remi^lscepc^*! o" (rov. Doty: "T knew him iitim^itplv
T!'h°n he livprl 'n "npfroit. T fonnc^ him here whpn T cme. in Sentemh'^r. 1819.
nn'^ '•o'^m^d with him. madp the tonr of the TiSkes with him in (ren. Cass's ex-
pe-^it'o^ in 1820. and enioypd his nninterrnnted friendship while he lived.
Hp rr^pp'^ed me to De^ro't n fpw months. TTp became the law partner of
Gerree MacDoneall, a native of Michia'ari. of Scotch and French descent. Mac-
Don?al was tbpn an elderlv man. a little inclined to le P'mlyre fele, which
mad'' him. at timps. c»*oi=«! and tro'ihlesome. His rapntal maladv so mastered
him the wi'i^-er of .Tohn O'n^cv Adams' election as President, that he cansed
a FrPT^ch cariolp to he made, with do^hle bottom, in which to carry some frozen
w^'to fish, f'-om r»"tro1t. tbroneh Ohio and over the Allesrhanies. as a honne
hrucJie or the T^resident, and was all ready to set out on his journey, when his
rea<='0'i retnrned.

"MacDono-aii nr'^dictPd from the first that Doty would hecome a man of mark.
The co-o'^rtnershln cr>nti^"ed f<^v several years. T thi^ik. probably. tiU Doty was
ma^ip' .T"d"e of tbe Northern District. Dotv had charee of the nleadinss and
d'^ck'^t. nn-i MacD'^"ffa11 as<''storj in co'irt. wher-^ his excellent k^owledrre of the
French ian<rua!^o •p"as a con nterbal a ncp to big inrk of lesral attainment and crood
horse sense. While Goyrtior Dotv lived 1^ Dpt^oit, he was distin^nisbpd for
closp anrlic«ition to his profession and ^or f'-nfra'ity. T have been told that he
manifested a widely gnec"lativ'^ turn, nnreq-rlated by nroper p^d^ment. in Wiscon-
sin. He may have possessed the crerm of t>>at tende^cv when her'^. b"t in that
day there was nothine to snec'ilate with or nnon. The h'im-dr"m of Territorial
Ijfp TT-qc, as "Par inariHion as possible. Fven ag late as 18R4. T declinedbecominsr
f\ t-prtv +^ fiia r."T-o'-'opp <^f on-^-fo'^-rth of f^c FiT-ie addition to Chicaeo. the North
Side, at five thousand do'larg. Ten vears nrior to that T was in Ph'cajro. a^f!
wo'iM not have given that sum for hoth sides of the river as far as the eye could
extend.

"I would gladly furnish you something upon Governor Doty's history, which
mirht be o service in yonr annals, hut our long separation has rendered it ont
of my power.'*

James Duane Doty 371

casion that Gov. Cass, supported by Ms aissistants and canoe-
men, in the presence of the assembled dignitaries of the fierce
Chippewas, and in defiance of their menaces, pulled down the
British flag, which those Indians had displayed on the Ameri-
can side of the Straits on his arrival, and hoisted the Stars and
Stripes in its place. Mr. Doty was present, and aided, with
his own hands, in displaying the American flag. He often
spoke of it as a most exciting scene. The party left Detroit
early in May, traversed the Lakes, and reached the sources
of the Mississippi, held conferences with various Indian tribes,
and returned the last of l^ovember. Mr. Doty, besides having
charge of one of the canoes, acted as secretary of the expedi-
tion.

In the winter of 1821, Mr. Doty was at Washington, where
Mr. Henry Wheaton procured his admission as attorney in
the Supreme Court of the United States at the age of twenty-
two years.

In the winter of 1822-3, Congress passed an "act to pro-
vide for the appointment of an additional Judge, for the Mich-
igan Territory," and to establish courts in the counties of
2djchillimackinac, Brown and Crawford; the two latter coun-
ties embracing all that is now Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and
Dacotah. From the numerous applicants for the place, Presi-
dent Monroe selected James Duane Doty, of Detroit, for the
new Judge, l^o more suitable appointment could have been
made. With the exception of the two small settlements of
Green Bay and Prairie Du Chien, the whole vast area west of
Lake Michigan was an unbroken wilderness, and Judge Doty
soon proved himself just the man to traverse, explore and ex-
pose its wild recesses to civilization.

Descending the Lake from Green Bay to New York, in May,
1823, the writer found him in Detroit, already on the way to
his new circuit accompanied by his wife, whom he had just
married — the eldest daughter of Gen. Collins, of 'New Hart-
ford, Oneida Co., ]^. Y. The lady has since proven herself
eminently qualified for the wife of one destined to the eventful

career which has since marked the foot-steps of her husband.
25

372 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Gen. Collns, her father, was a prominent officer in the War
of 1812, commanding the l^ew York State militia at S'aeket's
iHarbor.

Judge Doty lost no time in entering on his duties as Judge
— ^laWr^giver to a country sufficient in extent for an empire.
He repaired forthwith to Prairie Du Chien ; organized the Ju-
diciary of Crawford county, and opened court. It was no easy
task to inaugurate justice in these wilds; to create sheriffs,
clerks and jurors, out of half breed Indian traders, voyageurs,
,and couriers du hois, but the tact, talent and perseverance oi
the young Judge prevailed: It was done, and stood fast

Judge Doty had thought to make Prairie Du Chien his
resting place — his home — but the leading Indian trader, and
one of great influence in the country, especially, not regarding
the establishment of courts within the precincts of his trade
with favor, but with evident dislike, early intimations of a
want of good neighborhood appeared between the leading
traders and the Judge of the U. S'. District Court; to avoid
which, as well as to find a more healthy location for his family,
he determined on a permanent residence at Green Bay, to
which place he soon removed, and made it his home for twenty
years.

The Judge proceeded to organize courts in Michillimackinac
and Brown counties, where he found the inhabitants generally
disposed to render every assistance in bringing a wild country
subject to law and good order. The terms were held with
perfect regularity throughout the whole district; he continued
to discharge his onerous duties for nine years and until super-
ceded by Judge Irwin, in 1832; when he turned over his ju-
dicature to his successor, and retired to private life — if, indeed,
his time and talents, devoted as they were thenceforward to
the development of the resources of this new country, could,
in any sense, be termed "private life."

Relieved from the cares and responsibilities of the Judgeship
and courts, he immediately commenced, on his own resources,
a personal examination, by repeated tours, of the country that
now constitutes Wisconsin and Northern Illinois. It was then

1869]

James Duane Doty 373

inhabited and possessed by the Aborigines. His sagacious
mind saw the importance of conciliating these natives; he
visited every village of note; made himself acquainted with,
and gained the good will of the chiefs; and contributed, in
no small degree, to the good understanding which followed
between the Government and these savage tribes. In the
course of these explorations he traveled over the whole of the
southern part of our Stat© many times — often quite alone —
stopping in the deep forest wherever night overtook him,
tying his Indian pony to a sapling, and with his saddle for a
pillow, laying down under his blanket with as little concern
as if in his own house.

In 1830, Congress made an. appropriation for surveying and
locating a military road from Green Bay to Chicago, and to
Prairie Du Chien. Judge Doty and Lieut. Center, of the
U. S. army, were appointed Commissioners, and surveyed and
located these roads during 1831 and 1832. Keposing from
these labors and travels. Judge Doty projected a map of this
Upper Country, from which in the main, one was soon after-
wards— but before the surveys — constructed for the use of the
War Department, and which to this day is still used there.

Judge Doty's talents for usefulness were now conceded and
appreciated by all; the people of the district of Michigan west
of the Lake elected him to the Legislative Council, in 1834,
in which he served with marked ability for two years. It was
while he was a member, that the Legislative Council of that
Territory began to agitate the question of a State Government,
which he was first to introduce, and which finally prevailed.

Returning from the Legislative Council, he became an ac-
tive operator in the public land sales, which were opened at
Green Bay in 1835-6. He was applied to from all quarters by
capitalists, to take agencies for the purchase of choice locations
in the Green Bay land district Hundreds of thousands of
dollars were placed at his disposal for investment — ^such confi.-
dence had they in his integrity and knowledge of the country,
and its best points for future towns and cities. The result
showed the confidence not misplaced; many of the most pop-

374 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

ulous towns and villages of the State to-day, stand on sites se-
lected at that time by him.

The rapid settlement of the comitry beyond the Great Lakes,
called for a new Territorial Government — a separation from
Michigan. Congress passed the act creating the Territorial
Government of Wisconsin, in 1836. Hon. Henry Dodge re-
ceived the appointment of Governor, and assembled the first
Legislature at Belmont. One of the most important matters
brought before that body, and to be settled by it, was the lo-
cation of the seat of government. Judge Doty, though re-
maining in private life, had not been idle, and especially was
not uninterested in this matter of a capital for Wisconsin.
There was great excitement over the matter in the Legislature ;
while others were planning, Judge Doty was acting. He ap-
peared at Belmont as a lobby member; and almost before the
Solons knew of it, by his superior tact, had brought about a
vote fixing the seat of government at Madison, the beautiful
place where it now is. There was a good deal of sparring and
fault-finding with Doty and his management at the time; but
all agree, now, that it was then, as it is seen to be since, just
the right place for the capital.

Wisconsin, as an organized Territory, had now a Delegate
in Congress. Judge Doty succeeded Hon. George W. Jones
in 1838, and served till 1841, when he was appointed Gov-
ernor of Wisconsin by President Tyler, serving nearly three
years, and was succeeded by Gov. Tallmadge. While Gover-
nor and Superintendent of Indian affairs, the Indians in Min-
nesota— Dacotahs or Sioux, and Chippewas — ^began to be un-
easy and troublesome. The War Department instituted a
commission for conference with them. Gov. Doty, on axy
count of his known acquaintance with Indian character, was
selected as Commissioner. He soon assembled the sachems,
and had a council. They listened with profound attention,
difficulties were allayed, and he made two highly important
treaties with the iNorth- Western Indian tribes. The Senate,
however, not accepting them, no opportunity was had of test-
ing their value, or otherwise, to the country.

James Duane Doty 375

He was a member of the first Constitutional Convention, in
1846; and although the draft of the Constitution offered by
that Convention, was rejected by the people, the general
opinion is that it was a far better one than that finally adopted
two years afterwards. He was elected to Congress from the
Third District, under the State organization of 1848, and
re-elected in 1851, and procured by his industry and influence,
important legislation for the State and his constituency;
serving both terms with great honor to himself, and to the en-
tire satisfaction of the people of the district.

In 1853 he retired once more to "private life;" to be re-
called by President Lincoln in 1861 — first as Superintendent of
Indian Affairs, and subsequently as Governor of Utah; hold-
ing this last place at the time of his death, June 13th, 1865.
!For the manner in which he discharged those important trusts,
reference is here had to the testimony of Hon. Charles
Durkee, his successor, and who is also from our State, and
was for many years intimately acquainted with him, both as a
public man and a private friend. In his first message to the
Legislative Assembly of Utah, Gov. Durkee thus alludes to
his predecessor:

"Since your last session, one who was accustomed to advise
vvith you in matters of legislation, has, by a mysterious Provi-
dence, been removed from his chosen field of labor.

"On the 13th of June last Governor James Duane Doty, de-
parted this life. Inasmuch as he was the Executive of this
Territory at the time of his death, it is proper and becoming
that I should upon this occasion express my sympathy with
his family and the people in view of this solemn event.

"From a long and intimate acquaintance with the deceased,
it gives me pleasure to bear testimony to his superior -abilities
as a statesman, and to his many virtues as a citizen.

"Governor Doty had for a long period enjoyed the esteem
and confidence of his fellow citizens. They had given him
prominent positions both in the State and JN'ational councils,
where his services proved creditable to himself, advantageous
to his constituents, and useful to his country. He was greatly

376 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

attached to frontier life. He was a pioneer in the settlements
of Michigan and Wisconsin, and his predilection was exempli-
fied in a request that his remains should repose in Utah, his
recently adopted home."

Grov. Doty was what we term ,in the West, a selJ-ma3e man.
Without the advantages of a collegiate education, yet by a
constant study of men and things he well supplied its place.
His vigorous mind was eminently practical, and his reading
very extensive, especially in all that related to the Government
of our country, and the history of the ISTorth-West. Personally
he had the advantage of a fine commanding figure; open, in-
telligent and pleasing countenance, and a most winning ad-
dress; you were his friend at first sight.

Not a politician in the common acceptance of the term, he
yet had many and some very sharp political contests. In
these he was always true to his friends, and placable and
courteous to his enemies. As a public man he was equally
approachable and dignified; neither sycophantic to power,
nor repulsive to the humble and dependent. He had, in a most
eminent degree, the good will of the masses.

Coming to this Upper Country in 1822-3, he was, without a
figure of speech, ^^one of the old settlers." But one American
citizen now living is known, who came to Wisconsin as early
as he did.*

Gov. Doty's last residence in the State, was at Menasha, on
Doty's Island — one of the many villages that have sprung up
under his influence. He had two sons and one daughter.
The eldest son, Maj. Charles Doty, late a Commissary in
the U. S. Army, mustered out in April last, now resides at
Menasha. The second son, James, accompanied Gov. Stevens,
on his exploring expedition for a route for railroad from the
Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean, and died in Washington Ter-
ritory some years since.

Mrs. Sarah C. Doty, the Governor's wife, accompanied him
to Utah in 1864; was with him at his death; has since returned

*Gen, A. G. Ellis, the writer of this narrative, who first came to Wisconsin
in 1821, in company with Bleazer Williams, ftnd for some time acted as
school teacher for the mission school of New York Indians, near Green Bay.

1869] James Duane Doty 377

to Wisconsin, and now resides in Oshkosli, with her widowed
daughter, Mrs. Fitzgerald.

The surviving members of Gov. Doty's family will mourn
his death; yet such men never really die, but live in their
deeds — their memories cherished and enshrined by posterity
to the latest ages.
Stevens Point, Jan. 1867.

378 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.

Reminiscences of Hoie-in-the-

Day

By Julius T. Clark

In the summer of 1843, weary of a life of almost idleness
and chafing in spirits for something to break up the dull mon-
otony of life as it was then forced to be spent in this now com-
paratively goodly city, I accepted from Governor Doty a
subordinate position under Government, among the Chippewa
Indians. My station was to be at S'andy Lake, an old trading
post of the IS^orth- Western, and more recently the American,
Fur Company.

I left Madison the first day of August, two days by stage
taking me to Milwaukee, and two more by steamboat to Mack-
inac, where I was forced to remain a week or more, waiting for
an opportunity to proceed to Sault St. Marie. The garrison at
Mackinac was then under the command of Captain, afterwards
Lieut. Col. Martin Scott, who subsequently fell, as I learned,
at the battle of Molino Del Key, in our war with Mexico.

At that time Capt. Scott possessed great celebrity as an ac-
curate marksman, and many a wonderful tale was told of hia
skill in this particular. After spending several days on this
Island, where nature has l:ivished so much that is beautiful
and picturesque, I embarked in a small fishing boat or skiff,
barely large enough to hold myself and baggage, and my com-
pagnon de voyage^ who carried a weekly or monthly mail, as
might suit the convenience of those concerned, from Mackinac
to Sault St. Marie. A rapid run tinged with somewhat of
danger to our little bark, over the dark waters of Lake Huron,
brought us into St. Mary's River, on whose bank we encamped
for the night. The next day, with no little toil and expendi-

1869]

Hole-in-the-Day 379

ture of manual labor, against the strong current of the river,
we reached the Falls or Eapids, celebrated since the day when
they were first visited by Kaymbault and Jogues, on their
tour of spiritual conquest.

Here, again, I was compelled to wait a week or two for the
departure of a vessel to La Pointe. There were at that time
but two vessels upon Lake Superior; one, a hermaphrodite
brig, Capt. Stannard, belonged to the American Fur Com-
pany, and the other a smaller vessel belonging to a Cleveland
company. These vessels were then at Sault St. Marie for the
double purpose of taking in such supplies as the Companies
needed for fall and winter use and trade, and also to take to
La Pointe Government stores for the annual payment to the
Chippewas, which was to tal^e place in the month of Septem-
ber. Accompanying them, also, were a number of persons
from Detroit and other places upon the Lakes, with a goodly
supply of scarlet cloth, beads and cheap jewelry, and such
other articles as would be most likely to draw from the In-
dians the money which the Government officers were about to
disburse among them. I embarked on one of these vessels,
and after a pleasant sail through the king of all Lakes, in due
time arrived at La Pointe.

La Pointe was then occupied as the chief post or factory of
the American Fur Company, from whence all the inferior
agencies received their stated supplies. Dr. B. W. Borup
was then at the head of this department of the Company's oper-
ations. He was a Dane, from Copenhagen, and a highly cul-
tivated and intelligent gentleman, in whose family I found, on
his invitation, a most pleasant home, during my stay upon the
Island.

In former times the Company had found it necessary to make
ail the defences, and keep up the discipline of a military post
But at the period of my visit, this had been considerably re-
laxed. La Pointe was also occupied as a missionary station.
There were two missionary establishments — Catholic and Prot-
estant; the former, then under the charge of Father Baraga,
had existed for a long series of years, having preceded even

380 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.r

the footsteps of the early traders; the latter had been estab-
lished more recently, but under the energetic labors of Mr.
Hall, had accomplished considerable in the way of civiliza-
tion and Christianity for the poor savage. Among other things
done by Mr. Hall, he reduced the Chippewa (or more prop-
erly, 0-jeeb-wa) language to a system ; and translated the 'Nem
Testament and a variety of other books into their language.
One of these Testaments, I had the pleasure of presenting to
this Society after my return.

I have also a part of the grammar, as made by Mr. Hall,
in manuscript — and I may say here what will illustrate the re-
marks which I shall make when speaking of him who is really
the object of what I had designed to say — that the O-jeeb-wa
language abounds in vowels and liquids, and is by far the
most musical and richest language of which I have any knowl-
edge. The almost endless inflections of the verb in its differ-
ent forms, enables the Chippewa to express every shade of
thought in one word, which would either be altogether impos-
sible in our language, or only to be arrived at, by an awk-
ward and uncertain circumlocution. As an evidence of this, I
will state, that one of the missionaries told me that there were
about one hundred and fifty forms of the regular verb in the
indicative mood, present tense, first person, singular number.
This might have been somewhat exaggerated; but that there
is a wonderful facility in adapting the verb to the thought, I
can bear witness from even the slight knowledge which I ob-
tained of the language.

Soon after my arrival, the Indians began to assemble for pay-
ment, and in a few days several hundreds of the chiefs and
braves of the nation were gathered on the Island; and finer
specimens of men in their physical structure and general ap-
pearance could not be found among any people. In this re-
spect the Chippewas are far superior to any other of the
savage tribea which I have met. I cannot now enter into
anything like a detail of what I learned of their general history,
but the Chippewa is one of the most numerous and extended
of the Indian tribes, occupying a large portion of the !Nortb

1869

Hole- in-the-'^ay 381

and N^orth-West. That part of the nation among whom I
resided and I presume the same is the case with the remainder,
is divided into numerous bands, each under a subordinate chief,
but the whole under one generally acknowledged head — and
that head chief, at the time of my visit, was the celebrated
Hole-in-the Day. This waL the common name by which he
' was known among our people. His real name was PugH>na-
ghe-zhisk, which, being literally translated, means, a puncture
through the sky, through which the light streams down. He did
not occupy this position by hereditary right, but by the com-
mon voice of the nation, aided by his own restless ambition and
love of distinction. For, like most of the ruder nations, the
Indians while nominally recognizing the hereditary nature of
the chieftainship, are by no means confined to it, and a man of
aspiring and really superior character, has it almost always in
his power to reach the goal of his ambition, irrespective of the
accidents of birth.

Brusha, the really head chief of the nation, as I was in-
formed, although a person of more than ordinary intelligence,
was not possessed of those daring and bold traits of character,
which are so captivating to the Indian mind; and while he
was respected and deferred to, as a legitimate hereditary chief,
the nation looked to and followed Hole-in-the-Day (for I
shall continue to call him by that name, by which he is
known to our people,) as their leader, and it was his counsel
and his plans which were in the end adopted. In his person,
he was rather under, than over the average height of the war-
riors assembled with him. In his dress he was very plain.
We all know how fond the Indians are of finery and tinsel,
and this is the characteristic of both sexes and all classes. I
have seen at least fifty ear-rings in one ear of some more than
ordinary pretentious squaw, not to mention the ornaments on
her arms and legs. Fops are by no means confined to Broad-
way or State street ; I have seen their legitimate brothers in the
wilds of the i^orth West. The freedom of Hole-in-the-Day from
this universal passion of his people, showed of itself a superi
ority and earnestness of character. There was in his appear-

382 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

ance and manner, when unexcited, a sobriety and thoughtful-
ness, which almost amounted to sadness. Something of the
character of that exhibited in Sully's portrait of Black
Hawk, in the possession of the Society — ^with the difference,
that it seemedj the more remarkable in Hole-in-the-Day, as
he was much more youthful, having scarcely arrived at the
prime of life. He was also taciturn in his temperament, seldom
conversing in public except upon matters of general interest
to his people, and then in an earnest and dignified way.

The first time my attention was particularly called to him,
was at a council of the subordinate chiefs and braves, held dur-
ing the payment, when some question of reciprocal obligation
between the Indians and the General Government, out of which
a misunderstanding had risen, was under consideration. The
Indians were seated in a large circle, and at one side within this
circle, stood Hole-in-the-Day. When he began to speak, he
was very deliberate, and his voice was calm, and his manners
mild and gentle as a woman's ; but as he continued speaking,
his animation and energy increased, until he finally poured
forth a torrent of eloquence, such as I had never heard before.
As his chest heaved and his eye glowed with the fervor of his
thoughts, his right arm bare and extended, and his mantle,
like the Roman to-ga, hanging over the other shoulder and
around his body, he looked the personification of Eloquence
itself. His control over his uncultivated brethren of the foresc
was complete, and it was to me a matter of very great interest
to watch the effect produced upon them by the varying nature
of his remarks: At one time, while engaged, perhaps in the
simple narrative of facts and incidents connected with his sub-
ject, they would quietly sit and listen with an occasional mur-
mur of approval of the truth of what he was saying; but
when it suited his purpose to appeal to their passions, he would
rouse himself up to all the fire and impetuosity of his nature,
and while his eye flashed and his features changed with the
changing emotions which glowed within his own breast, these
passions and emotions ran like an electric shock through his
auditors, until unable longer to restrain themselves, they,

Hole-in-the-Day 383

would literally leap from their seats, and in a frenzy of excite-
ment, fill the air with their savage yells. I had read in that
charming book of Wirt's, The Life of Patrick Henry, his
description of the effect of Henry^'s eloquence in the celebrat-
ed trial of the parsons, and, it seemed to me, an incident and a
power which had passed away with the heroes of that time —
not to be renewed, or permitted to be observed by us, their
degenerate descendants; but 'here in the wilds of the ITorth
West, among these native sons of the forest, I was permitted
to see the full working of this jvonderful power of mind over
mind.

Hole in the Day was the only man in the nation who was
feared by the traders and Government officers. I do not mean
that they feared personal injury, or were in danger of coming
into personal conflict with him; but they feared his influence
with his people. Although he was not inimical to our Gov-
ernment, yet he was very jealous of the honor and the rights
of his own nation; instances of the violation of both of which
he had been forced occasionally to witness. He had seen por-
tions of their territory passing away by treaty to the United
States, and the price, in many instances, perhaps, not alto-
gether an unfair one, enticed from them by the cunning and
artifice of the hordes of petty traders who thronged the annual
payments, leaving the poor savage nothing adequate in re-
turn either for his land or his money; and actuated, no doubt,
by a sincere regard for the welfare of his people, he had both
in private and in public councils, thrown all the weight of his
influence and authority against this policy, or rather, want of
policy, on their part. The traders made use of every effort
that promised any returns to overcome this opposition, and win
him to their interests, but without any real success. But the
stores of goods and the boxes of coin, with which the 'Indians
were tempted, proved too powerful even for the eloquence of
their favorite leader to wholly withstand. Still his influence
was sufficient to keep the traders in a state of constant anxiety.
They courted his favor, but he met them with coldness and
reserve; they offered him presents, but, as a general thing, he

384 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

declined to receive them. There was one avenue, however,
through which they found access to him, and that was the In-
dian's innate and unconquerable love of ardent spirits.

Perhaps it would be impossible to find a more illustrative
example of the power of this passion for intoxication, than
was exhibited in the life of this celebrated chief. With the
firmness of any of the ancient heroes to withstand all the ap-
proaches of corruption, and temptations to treachery, and with
all the consciousness that he was the idol of his people, and of
his ability to maintain that position, if true to himself; and
with too much sagacity not to see where a course of dissipation
would be sure to leave him in the end, he still allowed himself
to be taken an easy and willing prey in this snare, designedly
spread for his overthrow.

At the time I knew him, the law of the United States pro-
hibiting the sale or gift of intoxicating liquor to the Indians,
was enforced by the officers of the Goveamment with as much
fidelity as practicable, so that it was very difficult to elude
their vigilance; and instances of its violation were compara-
tively few, and of course it was very rarely that the Indians
had an opportunity of gratifying a taste, which is as natural
to an Indian as his breath. But the discovery and working of
the Copper Mines, and other avenues of speculation about that
time, soon drew numerous white settlers into different parts of
that region, and with civilization came its necessary concomi-
tants in the country, dnmkenness and debauchery; and the
Chippewa of that country of to-day, is, I suppose, quite a dif-
ferent person from the Chippewa of early times, before these
vices had degraded him to a level with his white brethren.
With numbers of others, Hole-in-the-Day also fell. Parta-
king of the demoralization of his tribe, he partially lost his
influence over them, and followed the white population who
ministered to his appetite for drink, until at last, several years
since, while riding in a state of intoxication from St. Paul to
St. Anthony, he was thrown from the vehicle, and killed by the
fall. Such was the inglorious end of the life of one of the

1869J

Hole-in-the-Day 385

most distinguislied chiefs of his time, and whose early career
gave such promise of success.

What he would have been under other circumstances, and
away from the contaminating influences and examples of the
white settlers, can, of course, only be a matter of conjec-
ture. He fell so soon after his rise, that we are left somewhat
in doubt as to the genuine nature of the power by which he
rose. There was very little in the circumstances and history of
his nation while he remained as its axiknowledged head, to call
forth large energies and develop great traits, had he possessed
these quantities in ever so eminent a degree. The relations
existing between the Indians and our own Government, were,
in the main, conducted with so much fairness, and such re-
gard shown to their wishes and welfare, that they had no just
ground for hostility to us; and I found, in fact, that there
existed, almost universally among them, kind and loyal feel-
ings towards us as a nation, and there was a very general readi-
ness to aclaiowledge the word of their Great Father as law.

The hereditary feuds existing between the Chippewas and
Sioux, were at this time held in check by the power of our
Government, and a repetition of the bloody wars which had
been the yearly history of these two nations for centuries, ren-
dered difficult or impossible ; and thus these avenues, almost the
only ones open to a savage chief, were effectualy closed to the
aspiring ambition of Hole-in-the-Day, whatever may have been
his desire or his ability to pursue them.

It is not impossible, that the chafing and unrest of his en-
ergies, confined and hampered, as they were, for want of an
adequate theatre for their exercise, may have contributed to
that course of life, which led so rapidly to his fall.

Had the theatre been open to him, I have no doubt he would
have been successful in realizing the utmost limits of 'his am-
bition. Nature had stamped her mark upon him. The Indians,
his brethren, who, whatever else they may lack, do not lack a
quick apprehension of character, showed their appreciation of
him in the name they gave him.

386 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

We are so prone to associate greatness with schools and
books, and the arts and sciences of civilized life, that it is ex-
tremely difficult to realize that a man may be great withont
any of these things entering into the elements of his greatness ;
and I presume it is as true of others, as of myself, that we
have no just understanding of the Indian character until after
a personal and somewhat intimate acquaintance with them-
Reading and description do not give it unto us, for the reason
that we have formed in our mind one standard of greatness for
civilized, and another for savage life ; and we involuntarily and
almost necessarily employ the latter when contemplating any
of the race to which we have applied it Personal acquaint-
ance alone will thoroughly rectify this mistake. ISTature is true
to herself. The greatness of genius is inherent, and not the
result of nationality or of any factitious circumstances of
birth or education. Quickness of perception, firmness of pur-
pose, comprehensiveness of mind, incorruptible fidelity, noble-
ness of disposition — these, and other like qualities, make the
truly great man, whether civilized or savage ; and the career of
Hole-in-the-day, short and unfavorable as it was, developed
these traits of character, and for these let us respect his mem-
ory, and draw a veil, if possible, over that part of his life
in which the power of the tempter was too strong even for
these virtues to resist, and wherein he fell, as many of our
own good and great have fallen.
February llth, 1862.

Ig69]

Hole-in-the-Day 387

Sketch of Hole-in-the-Day

By Rev. Alfred Brunson, A. M., D. D.

My first acquaintance with this celebrated Chippewa chief
was in July, 1838, when I was a missionary to his tribe, on the
Upper Mississippi. I next met him at La Pointe, in the fall of
1843, when I was Indian agent at that place. As he was a
distinguished man, bath on the river and on the lake, I natural-
ly made all the inquiries and observations I could in reference
to him. My interpreters, both in the mission and in the agency,
were natives of the Chippewa country, and knew him from
their youths. Lyman Warren, then (in 1843) a trader for
twenty-five years among these Indians, had known this chief
from r- youth, and, being a man of some intelligence, and of a
historic turn of mind, seemed to be well posted in this matter.
I also availed myself of conversations with, and inquiries made
of other traders and aged intelligent Indians. From the infor-
mation thus received, and from personal observations, I am
enabled to give the following facts and characteristics of this
chief :

He must have been bom about the year 1800, as he was
about twenty years of age in 1820, when he made his first
mark in his career, before the whites. He was bom, as near as
I could learn, not far interior from La Pointe, at a place now
in the State of Wisconsin. Possessing an enterprising spirit,
and a dare-devil in temperament, he was early upon the war-
path, the chase, and in every enterprise calculated to give dis-
tinction in the estimation of untutored men. Having, while
quite young, slain one of his nation's hereditary foes, he
had consequently, according to Indian usage, a feather in

his hair, and a seat in the council among the braves, where he
26

388 Wisconsin Historical Collections [vol..

was soon distinguished for his eloquence, wisdom, and force of

argument.

His daring exploits on the war-path, the chasei and in per-
sonal encounters, as well as his boldness and force in council;
naturally drew around him the young men of his tribe, who
admired such feats and traits of character, and who acknow-
ledged him as a leader. Like other demagogues, in theii
aspiration for distinction and notoriety, he moulded the minda
of his admirers and adherents as he desired, and his superioi
talent and tact at this, and his success in it, could hardly fail
to create in him an ambition for position and distinction among
his own people, even if it had not been born in him.

He was not a hereditary chief, though his mother was the
daughter of a chief; but by common consent of his admirers
and followers, he led them in the war-path, in the chase, and
in the council, much after the style of the whites in such cases.

His first introduction to the whites, as a man of mark, and
a reliable friend of the Government, was on this wise: After
the war with Britain of 1812-15, when the British employed
the Indians extensively on our North Western frontier, they
continued to give them presents annually, to secure their
friendship and services in case of another war. One point at
which those presents were distributed was on our soil, at St.
Mary's, the outlet of Lake Superior, where all the Indians on
both sides of the Lake and as far west as the headwaters of
the Mississippi and Ked Lake, gathered to receive them.

In 1820, Lewis Cass, Governor of Michigan Territory, and
Superintendent of Indian Affairs in all the E'orth West, was
ordered to break up this present-giving custom on our soil, and
if possible, secure the good will of the Indians to our Govern-
ment and people, and detach them from the British, for with-
out it, in case of another war, they would be troublesome cus-
tomers on that frontier. He ascended the Lakes and in-
tervening rivers with some twenty-five officers, and soldiers,
together with interpreters, voyagers and domestics, in all, per-
haps, fifty or sixty men, in a fleet of bark canoes, with a full
supply of provisions, and goods for presents. On reaching

Hole-in-the-Day 389

that place, the Governor found a large body of Chippewa
Indians encamped, and the British flag waving in the wind, all
awaiting the arrival of the British agent and his goods.

To cope with this formidable body of savages whose attach-
ments to their British benefactors, were enthusiastic, with this
handful of men, was a fearful, if not a hopeless, task. But for-
tune favors the brave. Cass with his own hands, hauled down
the British flag, trampled upon it, and hoisted the Stars and
Stripes in the presence, and in defiance of the Indians who
stood, guns in hand, and called for those of them who were
friendly to the United States to come forward, and support
and defend it.

This was an occasion suited to the genius, temperament, and
feelings of Hole-in-the-Day. With characteristic impetuosity
and bravery, he rushed up to the Governor and his escort, and
called aloud for his friends and the friends of the United
States to join him in defending the flag and the Governor. In-
stantly a hundred or more stood by his side, ready tO' obey
his conmiands, when our hero thundered defiance at those who
favored the foreign flag, and challenged combat vdth any who
dared to molest ^'our Great Father,'' or the flag. His char-
acter was so well known on both sides of the Lake, that no one
dared to raise a hand against him, or the Governor. But for
this daring exploit it was thought by the whites who were
present, that Cass and all his men would have been killed on
the spot.* The result was, the British agents were not allowed
to land nor distribute their goods on our soil, but were com-
pelled to go on the other shore, whither the Indians from that

•There must be some mistake in connecting Hole-ln-the-day with this affair.
When Gen. Cass pulled down the British flag, there was great commotion
among the Indians, but none came to his aid. The statements of Cass, School-
craft and Trowbridge, all eye-witnesses, corroborate this fact. But during
the ensuing night, when great efforts were made among the Chippewas to
prevent an out-break, young Hole-in-the-day may have distinguished himself
in opposing the British party, and preserving peace. Or, it is not at all im-
probable, that the young Indian hero called Buck by Mr. Trowbridge, in his
account of the affair, appended to this series of papers on Hole-in-the-day,
father and son, may have been the veritable young Hole-in-the-Day himself;
for it is not uncommon for Indians to change their names — especially supplant-
ing their youthful one with another more characteristic of their adult actions,
or more consonant with their tastes or aspirations. Dr. Brunson adds in
verbal explanation of this discrepancy, that he can only say that he had the
narrative of Hole-in-the-day's connection with the event in question, from
Lyman Warren, and his son Wm. W. Warren — the latter the native historian
of the Chippewas, whose narrative Is given in the 2d vol. of Schoolcraft's
large work on the History of the Indian Tribes ; and it would, therefore, seem

3 go Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

side followed, and some few from our side, and received
their presents. But Hole-in-the-day, and all lie could con-
trol, being most, if not all, tlie chiefs and braves from our side
of the Lake, remained with the Governor, who made a liberal
distribution of goods among them.

The Governor then ascertained who were chiefs on our soil,
and gave them each a United States flag and a silver medal as
insignias of their office, of which, they were very proud, and
which they were sure to display with pride and pomp on every
appearance of white men among them. But discovering that
Hole-in-the-day was not a regular or hereditary chief, and
feeling that his daring, bravery, and evident influence over the
tribe, demanded recognition and reward, he elevated liim to
that rank and dignity, and gave him a flag and a medal in
presence of them all, and directed that all, of any band, who
felt disposed to do so, could join the new chief, thus forming a
new band in the nation. T'wenty-three years later, when I was
their Agent, this was on© of the strongest bands in the tribe;
and though he was not acknowledged the head chief, yet he
exerted a greater influence among his people, and with, the
whites, than any other chief among them.

This great chief, witli his new band, to avoid collision with
the territory claimed by older chiefs, migrated to Gull Lake on
the Mississippi, and occupied part of the territory between the
Chippewas and Sioux, thus extending the Chippewa lines far-
ther south, and becoming the frontier band of the nation in
that direction — a position well suited to the wax-like pro-
pensities of him and his followers. The Sioux regarded this
as a further encroachment upon their territory, and frequent
battles ensued between them as the consequence.

Tlie name of Hole-in-the-day became a terror to the
Sioux, on account of his daring feats against them ; and also a
dread even among the Chippewas — so much so that no one
dared to oppose measures upon which ,he was determined. In
a dispute between him and the recognized head chief, he drew
his knife across the face of that chief — a high insult in Indian

Hole-in-the-Day 391

estimation — and /challenged him to mortal ocxmbat, but the
chief declined.

In 1825, Gov. Cass was ordered by the Government to as-
semble the Sionx, Ghippewas, Winnebagoes, Monomonees and
the Sauks and Foxes at Prairie Du Chien, to fix and settle
upon the boundary lines between these respective tribes.
There was but little trouble in doing this, except between the
Sioux and Chippewas. This dispute was fierce, and threatened
an open rupture between them. The Sioux claimed the coun-
try to Lake Superior, and down it as far as Keweewenon Point,
at least ; while the Chippewas claimed it as far south from that
Lake as to the St. Peter's, or Minnesota, and Chippewa rivers.
The Governor asked the Sioux upon what ground they claimed
the country in dispute. They answered, "by possession and
occupation from our fore-fathers;" as the whites would say,
"from time immemorial." This was literally true, as far as
our knowledge of the matter goes, for some two hundred years
ago, the Sioux pursued and attacked their foes as far East as
Sault St. Marie.

But turning to the Chippewas, he asked the same question.
Hole-in-the-day, who, by common consent, was their chiecf
speaker, at once rose in his usual impetuous manner, and
gracefully waving his right arm, said: "My father! We
claim it upon the same ground that you claini this country
from the British King — ^by conquest We drove them from the
country by force of arms, and have since occupied it; and
they cannot, and dare not, try to dispossess us of our habita-
tions." "Then," said Cass, "you have a right to it" But to
harmonize all differences, as far as possible, a line was run
between them, but the Chippewas secured "the lion's share."

War continued between these two powerful tribes, despite
the effort of Government troops to prevent it. In 1837, Gov.
Dodge, of Wisconsin, then Superintendent of Indian Affairs
on the frontier, convened the two tribes at Fort Snelling, with
a view to settling all disputes between them, and making a
permanent peace. They agreed to the terms proposed, signed
the treaty, and the youi^ men of the two tribes had a friendly

392 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

game of ball on the plain outside of the Fort, and in sight of
the great gathering of whites and Indians then present. They
mutually agreed that each tribe might hunt on the neutral
ground between them, and separated in apparent peace and
friendship.

But in April, 1838, about nine months after this treaty was
made, Hole-in-the-day, accompanied by his son, then about
nine years old, and seven of his braves, were on a hunt upon
the neutral territory, where they found a lodge of Sioux, con-
sisting of eleven persoi^s. He met them with professed friend-
ship, and being invited, took lodging with them. But, savage-
like, he thirsted for blood, despite the treaty he had signed the
summer previous. He laid his plans for the massacre of all
m the lodge.- It was arranged for each to lie down by a Sioux,
and at signal from him each was to draw his knife, and thrust
it into the heart of the Sioux who lay next tO' him. The
place assigned the little son was by a girl about two years his
senior. His father, in directing the affair, said to the son, "if
you are afraid, I'll whip you ;" but the son affirmed his cour-
age and determination to do as directed.

After feasting and snioking together, they lay down for a
night's repose, but at the signal given the nine knives were
drawn, and nine Sioux, including the little girl, were slain in
an instant. One woman made her escape, and one woman
was taken prisoner, with whom the Chippewas immedi-
ately retreated to their own country, taking with them, of
course, the nine scalps.* The woman who escaped soon
reached a lodge of her own tribe, and giving notice of what
had occurred, the news spread like wild-fire, and the Sioux,
far and near, were soon in arms, ready for revenge. But they

♦In Neill's History of Mirmesota, pp. 454-56, we find it stated, that in the
fall of 1837, "Hole-in-the-Day, a distinguished Ojibway Chief, father of th«
young man who now bears that name, had smoked the calumet with the
Dahkotahs, and promised to meet them the next Spring, and make them
presents for the privilege of hunting on their lands;" but instead of fulfilling
that stipulation — made, most likely, to entrap the Sioux Into a fancied
security — a party of eleven Chippewas came to the advance of three lodges of
eioux, in the region of Lac Qui Parle, in Minnesota, composed of men,
women and children, who killed a couple of dogs, and feasted their Chippewa
visitors in distinguished barbarian style, and finally all laid down to sleepb
When all was silent, the guests arose, and killed and scalped nearly the whole
camp, old and young, eleven In number ; and among those who escaped, were a
wounded Sioux mother and her wounded boy. L. C. D.

Hole-in-the-Day 393

hesitated from fear of that terrible chief and his indomitable
band; and, moreover, the military at the Fort interfered to
prevent a further effusion of blood.

Some time in June of this year. Miles Vineyard, Sub-
Agent to the Chippewas on the Upj)er Mississippi, arrived at
Fort Snelling, and taking -with him Quinn, his interpreter,
and several voyagers, and gentlemen who accompanied him
"for sight seeing," ascended the river in canoes to a point a
short distance above Little Falls, and summoned Hole-in-the-
day and his band to a council, and demanded the prisoner.

In July, 1838, not knowing of this movement, I ascended
the river to the same point, with a view to establish a misr
sion and school somewhere among these Indians. I found
them in council on an Island. As is their custom, when a
stranger arrives, all business was suspended till the new comers
were introduced, and the news inquired for, the burden of
which was, whether the Sioux were coming to attack them.
Vineyard had told them, as a reason why they should sur-
render the prisoner, that seven hundred Sioux were actually
on the war path, and he desired me to confirm his report. This
I could not do; but said that I had heard of great excitement
among the Sioux, and that they were preparing for war, but I
had not seen any of them. This over, they resumed business.

I had heard so much of Hole-in-the-Day that I was
anxious to see him. The council was in a thicket on an Island.
The underbrush had been cut out and piled in the center, and
perhaps fifty braves seated on the ground in the circle. The
Agent and his attaches were seated in like manner under a tree^
on one side of the circle, by the side of whom I, with my at-
tendants, were assigned the place of honor, and looking in
vain for one of distinguished appearance, I inquired of my in-
terpreter which was the great chief, and he pointed to the
dirtiest, most scowling and savage looking man in the crowd,
who was lying on the pile of brush in the center, as if, as I
found to be the fact, he was alone on his side of the question
to be settled. All others had agreed before my arrival, to re-
lease the prisoner; he alone stood cut

394 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. y

As they resumed business, a dead silence occurred of some
minutes, all waiting for his final answer. At length he rose
up with impetuosity, as if shot out of a gun. His blanket, in-
nocent of water since he owned it, was drawn over his left
shoulder and round his body; his right arm swinging in the
air, his eyes flashing like lightning, his brow scowled as if a
thunder gust had settled on it, with his long hair literally snap-
ping in the air from the quick motion of his head. I thought
of Hercules, with every hair a serpent, and every serpent hiss-
ing. He came forward, as is their custom, and shook handf
with the Agent and all the whites present, and then stepping
back a short distance, orator like, to give himself room for mo-
tion, aad swinging his right arm, said addressing the Agent:

"My Father! I don't keep this prisoner out of any ill-wil]
to you; nor out of ill-will to my Great Father at Washington;
nor out of ill-will to these men, (gracefully waving his hand
back and round the circle;) but I hate the Sioux. They have
killed my relatives, and I'll have revenge. You call me chief,
and so I am, by nature as well as office, and I challenge aii;j
of these men, (again waving his haad towards them,) to dis-
pute my title to it. If I am chief, then my word is law, other-
wise you might as well put this medal, (showing the one he
received from Gov. Cass,) upon an old woman." He them
threw himself upon a pile of brush, and all was again silenl
for some minutes, no one daring to dispute him. The worsl
forebodings seemed to occupy each mind. Seven hundred
men expected to pounce suddenly on about fifty; the dia
pleasure of the Agent, and consequently of the Government and
troops in the garrison, but a few day's march from them, and
possibly the troops would accompany the Sioux, for all fell
that this outrage of their chief was a breach of faith and
solemn pledges to the Government, as well as to the Sioux
Finally he rose again, but a little milder in manner, and said:

"My Father ! for your sake ; and for the sake of these menj
(waving his hand round the circle,) I'll give up the prisonerj
and go myself and deliver her at the Fort."

This was but little better than a refusal; for all knew that

Hole-in-thc-Day 395

if he showed himself at the Fort, which was within the terri-
tory of the Sioux, he would be shot down on eight, and all
hands set in to advise him not to go, but let the Agent take
the prisoner home to Fort Snelling. To this he finally con-
sented, and the Agent took the prisoner and delivered her to
her friends.

Finding the Indians in too much excitement to talk of a
mission, further than to express a desire to have one when the
war was over, and designating a point at which to have it
located, I returned to the mission below the Fort, and from
thence up the St. Croix.

It was not many days, however, before this daring chief de-
termined to visit the Fort. Four or ^ve of his dare-devil
braves getting wind of it, determined to accompany him, and
if he died to die with hiuL So stealing away in the night,
that the whole band should not go, they descended the river,
and stopped at Quinn's, their interpreter, near Baker's Trad-
ing House, about a mile from the Fortw It was soon known
among the Sioux that he was there, and two men lurked in
the bush to get a shot at him. The chief, and his few braves,
were in the house, and were advised to keep close. But a
half-breed from Red River, who was also there, stepped out of
the door; the Sioux, who were on the watch, thought he was
their great enemy, and fired upon him wounding him in the leg.
Hearing the report of the guns, and the groans of the wounded
man, the men in the house rushed out, gun in hand, and see-
ing the two Sioux running, fired upon them, both falling, one
dead, the other mortally wounded.

An officer who happened to be on the brow of the hill upon
which the Fort stands, hearing the guns, and seeing the two In-
dians fall, ran to the Fort, gave the alarm, and soon returned
with a force sufficient to guard the bloody chief and 'his men to
the Fort, where they were kept close for several days.

In the meantime, runners were going in every direction to
inform the Sioux, and hundreds of them were soon under
arms, and demanded their enemy to be dealt with according to

396 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

their laws of war. This, Major Plympton,* then in com-
mand, refused. At this, the Sioux became exasperated to the
highest pitch, declaring their determination to destroy the
Fort, and kill or drive out of the country every white man,
officer, soldier, trader and missionary; but were prevented
from the attempt, chiefly by Little Crow, the father of the
late chief of that name, who, in 1862, made war upon the
Minnesota people.

It must be admitted, that it was a great trial to the patience
of the Sioux to have their enemy thus protected and fed with-
in their own territory, and especially under such circumstances
of treachery and breach of treaty stipulations. Their plan
was to attach pieces of spunk to arrows, ignite them, and shoot
their arrows over the walls of the Fort in such a way as to
have the points stick in the roofs of the buildings, and bring
the ignited spunk in contact with the dry wood, and trust to
the wind to kindle the fire. But they were prevented from
getting within arrow reach of the walls.

After things had quieted down a little, and the scouts that
were sent out by the Sioux to intercept the chief and his men
in their return to their own country^ had returned. Major
Plympton sent them away between two days, putting them
on the east bank of the river, with provisions to last them
home, and strict orders not to venture there again till peace
was restored.

Meantime war parties were out on both sides, and several
severe battles were fought, and many men, women and chil-
dren were killed. The Chippewas suffering the most, all
growing out of the treacherous act of this daring chief, which,
so far as I could learn, was his only act of perfidy of the kind.

My next meeting with Hole-in-the-Day, was in the fall of
1843, at La Pointe, on Lake Superior, where I was Indiaa

♦Joseph Plympton. a native of Massachusetts, entered the army as a Second
Lieutenant, in January, 1821, served durinig the war of 1812-'15, reaching
a First Lieutenant ; was promoted to Captain in 1821. and Major in 1840 ;
Berved with distinction during the Florida war, commanding In an attack on
the Seminoles, near Dunn's Lake, January 25, 1842 ; was promoted to Lieu-
tenant Colonel in September, 1846, and served at the head of his regiment
during the Mexican war, under Gen. Scott, distinguishing himself at the battles
of Cerro Gordo and Contreras, for which he was brevetted Colonel. L. C. D.

1869]

Hole-in-the-Day 397

Agent, and made them their first payment after they sold out
the Copper Kegion. There were 5,03Y of all the bands, parties
to the treaty, and participants in the payment; and, though
Hole-in-the-Day was not recognized as head chief of the tribe,
yet it was evident, that his influence exceeded that of any other
chief among them. He displayed the skill of a general, and
the wisdom of a statesman. One or two incidents will show
his characteristic traits on these matters.

In the winter preceding this payment, I was informed of a
conspiracy, gotten up by the Canadian half-breeds, who, being
chagrined because they were not included in the treaty and
payments, to capture the vessel — ^the only one on that Lake at
that time — on her way up with the money and goods for the
payment, and run her into a harbor on the north side of the
Lake, divide the money and goods, and disperse to parts \mr
known, leaving the vessel and crew to return at their leisure;
all to be done before Government troops on either shore could
be rallied to their relief. The plan was to board the vessel by
canoe in a calm, and to have different parties at different
points, so that if no calm occurred at one point, it might at an-
other.

As a matter of precaution, at my request, a guard of twenty-
five men was sent from the Fort at St Mary's. The conspira-
tors, who had their spies out, seeing this, were deterred from
making the attack, but they came to the payment, several hunh
dred strong, and encamped near the pay ground.

Hole-in-the-Day had heard of this conspiracy, and seeing
the conspirators on the ground, was on the alert watching their
movements; and about midnight of the second day of the
gathering, saw them assembling at a tent, and stealing up near
enough to hear them, learned their plans. The goods had been
landed and stored in a Fur Company's ware-house, quite out
of their reach. But the money was in the stem of the vessel
for safe keeping, till needed for distribution. The soldiers
were quartered on board. The vessel was moored to the
wharf. The only way to which, from the land, was through a
ware-house in which a lamp was hung by night, and a senti-

398 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voLv

nel placed botli day and night. Their plan of attack was by
canoes; to overcome the guard, seize the vessel, hoist sail, and
avail themselves of the land breeze which always blows in the
night in calm or moderate weather, and put for Canada with
the money.

On being informed of this, I roused up the officers who doub-
led the guard, and found that Hole-in-the-Day, before he in-
formed me of the affair, had over a hundred of his men un-
der arms, and had surrounded the ware-house containing the
goods, and was guarding the way to the vessel; and finding
themselves thus headed off, the conspirators desisted from
their piratical purpose.

The next morning they were summoned to meet the
charge; they of course denied it. But Hole-in-the-Day
confronted them; told what they said, and who said it; and
others also affirmed the truth of his story. Finding they
wore detected and convicted, they confessed, and begged for
mercy, assigned as the reason for their conduct, their ex-
clusion from the payment, and hoped their friends would re-
member them with presents when they received their pay-
ment. Under these circumstances, and their promises to be-
have themselves, they were allowed to remain on the Island.
They had no earthly right to share in the payment. They
lived in Canada, and had no claim whatever upon the lands sold.

Another incident showed his thoughtfulness and statesman-
ship. I proposed to the Chippewa a few simple laws for the
government of their affairs. One was, not to pay for the depre-
dations committed by individuals out of the common funds of
the tribe; but to make the wrong-doer pay the damage out of
his own money or goods. This would make him feel the
effects of his own evil doings, much more than if the damage
was paid out of the common fund, and all bore it equally.

Hole-in-the-Day came to me privately to inquire about the
bearings of such a law, showing a strong legislative tact and
ability ; and when informed to his satisfaction, he espoused the
cause and the law was unanimously adopted. Two claims
for damages of this nature were thus paid ; the effect of which

H ole-in-the-Day 399

was to make each one more cautious, when tempted to do wron^,
knowing that if he did so, his own individual funds would be
made to pay for it, and not the funds of innocent parties.

I also urged upon them the importance and propriety of
cultivating the soil, each for himself, and allowing individual
rights, where improvements were made; and as the Govern-
ment had provided them with a farmer to instruct them in ag-
riculture, to avail themselves of his instruction; and by doing
as the whites do in such matters, they could live as the whites
do. Of these matters he also inquired, and declared his inten-
tion to follow my advice. To do this, he first selected a site
at Gull Lake, but afterwards, as I was informed, moved to an-
other place, where he made quite a farm, built houses, bams,
&c., which is probably the one occupied by his son, the late
Hole-in-the-Day, who was recently shot and killed by some
of his own tribe.

IsTature did much for this elder chief, as also for the younger
one. Had old Hole-in-the-Day been favored with an edu-
cation, he would have been distinguished among the great
men of the world. Like his own people, and too many of
the white race, he loved "the fire water," fell into habits of in-
temperance, and was thrown from a cart or wagon when intoxi-
cated, and killed, in 1847.

The little Chippewa boy who killed the Sioux girl, in April,
1838, was thus entitled, according to their custom, to
wear a large eagle's quill or feather fastened to his hair, as a
recognition that he had taken an enemy's scalp; and thus
he became a brave and sat in council with the braves of the
band; and no one strutted, or seemed to feel his consequence,
more than he did. If I am not mistaken, this was Hole-in-
the-Day's oldest son; and, if not the oldest, as least his
favorite, whom he intended to succeed him in the chieftaincy
of his band. Hole-in-the-Day promised, in 1838, to let me
have him the next year to educate; but not returning, I did
not secure him as a pupil. If I am not mistaken, this was
the late chief of that name, who succeeded his father, and fell
by the assassins' hand.

400 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

Note on Hole-in-the-Day

Gen. Cass relates an interesting incident of whlcti the hero was a Sioux Chief
whose name, unfortunately, is not preserved. "The Chippewas and Sioux," says
Gen. Cass, "are hereditary enemies, and Charlevoix says they were at war when
the French first reached the Mississippi. I endeavored, when among them, to
learn the cause which first excited them to war, and the time when it com-
menced. But they can give no rational account. An intelligent Chippewa Chief
Informed me that the disputed boundary between them was' a subject of little
importance, and that the question respecting it could be easily adjusted. He
appeared to think that they fought because their fathers fought before them.
This war has been waged with various success, and, in its prosecution, In-
stances of courage and self-devotion have occurred, within a few years, which
would not have disgraced the pages of Grecian or Roman history. Some years
since, mutually weary of hostilities, the Chiefs of both nations met. and agreed
upon a truce. But the Sioux, disregarding the solemn compact which they
had formed, and actuated by some sudden impulse, attacked the Chippewas, and
murdered a number of them. Ba-be-si-kun-dab-i, the Chippewa Chief, who
descended the Mississippi with us' [in 1820], was present upon this occasion,
and his life was saved by the intrepidity and self-devotion of a Sioux Chief.
This man entreated, and remonstrated, and threatened. He urged his coun-
trymen, by every motive, to abstain from any violation of their faith, and
when he found his remonstrances useless, he attached himself to this Chippewa
Chief, and avowed his' determination of saving, or perishing with him. Awed
by his intrepidity, the Sioux finally agreed that he should ransom the Chip-
pewa, and he accordingly applied to this object all the property he owned. He
then accompanied the Chippewa on his journey, until he considered him saf«
from any parties of the Sioux who might be disposed to follow him."

This noted Chippewa Chief, whom Schoolcraft calls Ke-che-Ba-be-se-gun-dlb-a,
or Big Curly Head, was at the head of the lower and more hardy bands of the
Chippewas, and three times had led his warriors successfully against the Sioux,
and each time returned with bloody knives and reeking scalps. He and Flat
Mouth led the Chippewas in the noted fight at Long Prairie. Big Curly Head
has been aptly spoken of, as the vanguard or bulwark of his tribe.

In an interesting paper on the traditional history of the Chippewas, by
Wm. W. Warren, an educated descendant of that nation, given in the 2d vol.
of Schoolcraft's History of the Indian Tribes, some notice is given of Bug-on-a-
ke-shig, the elder Hole-in-the-day and his elder brother Song-uk-um-eg, or
Strong Ground. Bug-on-a-ke-shlg, says Warren, literally means hole-In-the-sky ;
and the war-song of this chief was addressed to this guardian spirit, seen
through a hole in the sky. These two brothers, Strong Ground and Hole-in-the-
day, were In their youth, pipe bearers of Curly Head, and waited on him till
the day of his death, which was on the road returning from the treaty at
Prairie Du Chien, in 1825, which both Big Curly Head and Hole-in-the-day
signed ; and just before the old Chief expired, he counselled these two younf
men on their future course of life, and left in their charge his Mississippi
bands, and this circumstance laid the foundation of the Chieftainship of these
two afterwards noted brothers.

In the words of one of the principal Chippewas : "Big Curly Head was a
father to our fathers, who looked on him as a parent : His lightest wish was
quickly obeyed : His lodge was ever hung with meat : The traders vied with each
other who should treat him best : His hand was open, and when he had plenty,
our fathers wanted not." He was noted not only for his charity and goodness
of heart, but also for the strength of it for bravery and heroic adventure.

Such was the character of Big-Curly-Head, who early led forth young Strong
Ground and Hole-ln-the-Day on the war-path, and Instructed them In all the
precepts and wisdom of his people. These young chiefs distinguished them-
selves In the warfare of their tribe with the Sioux, and by their deeds of valor

Holc-in-the-Day 40 1

obtained »n extensive influence over their fellows of the Mississippi. By their
repeated and telling blows, aided by others, they forced the Sioux to fall back
from the woods on to their Western prairies, and eventually altogether to
evacuate that portion of their former country lying north of Sac River, and
Bouth and east of Leaf River, to the Mississippi.

In the language of Warren, their educated countryman, they earned, during
their short career, a name that will long be remeinbered among their people.
Strong Ground was as fine a specimen of an Indian as ever proudly trod the
soil of America. He was one of those honor-loving chiefs, not only by name,
but by nature also. He was noted for his unflinching bravery, generosity, and
solidity or flrmness ; the last of which is a rare quality in the Indian, among
whom not more iLan one out of ten is possessed of any firmness of character.
As an instance of his daring, on one occasion, he fought singly, by the side of
a mounted comrade, with seven f^ioux, and repulsed them with loss. His
first fight was, when a mere boy. at Long Prairie battle. Again, he was present
at an attack on a Sioux camp at Poplar Grove, on Long Prairie, where the
Chippewas killed many of their foes. At another time, he led a night attack
on a Sioux camp on Crow River. At Round Prairie, also, he with an Ottawa,
cut off from a large Sioux camp, three boys while they were sliding on the ice,
in plain view of their friends. He was one of the Chippewas who dispatched
the four Sioux prisoners surrendered by Col. Snelling in the autumn of 1826.
He was present on many other occasions that tried the man's heart. He died
but a few years anterior to the publication of Mr. Warren's sketch — which
appeared in 1852 — at about the age of forty-eight.

Hole-in-the-Day, his younger brother, continues Warren, was equally brave at
the moment of trial, but some of his contemporary warriors say of him, that
his extreme bravery did not last. "At the moment of excitement, he could have
thrown himself into the fire." These are the words of one of his noted brave«
who often fought at his side. He had not the flrmness of his brother Strong
Ground, but was more cunning, and soon came to understand the policy of
the whites perfectly. He was ambitious and, through his cunning, stepped
above his more straight-forward brother, and became head-chief. He was a
proud and domineering spirit, and loved to be implicitly obeyed. He had a
quick and impatient temper. A spirit like this is little calculated to be loved
and obeyed by the free wild sons of the forest, who love liberty too well to
become the slaves of any man. Hole-in-the-Day was more feared than loved
by his bands, and had it not been for the strong support of his more influential
brother, he could never have been really chief over his people.

On one occasion, he turned out and dispersed a whole camp of his fellow*
with a wooden paddle. The Indians were drinking liquor, and fighting among
themselves, after he had twice ordered them to drink in quiet. He struck with
his paddle promiscuously, and on tuis single occasion mortally offended some
of his best warriors. Notwithstanding his harsh and haughty temper, there
was in the breast of this man much of the milk of human kindness; and he
had that way about him that induced the few who really loved him, to be will-
ing even to die for him.

During his life-time, he distinguished himself in dght different fights, where
blood was freely shed. At St. Peters, he was almost mortally wounded — a bul-
let passing through his right breast, and coming out near the spine. On thii
occasion, his daughter was killed ; and from this time can be dated the blood-
thirstiness with which he ever after pursued his enemies. He had married a
daughter of Bi-aus-wah, a chief so distinguished among the Chippewas. that
he may be said to have laid the foundation of a dynasty of chleftaindom, which
has descended to his children, and the benefits of which they are reaping after
him.

His bravery was fully proved by his crossing the Mississippi, and with but
two brave comrades, firing on the large Sioux village of Ka-po-sia, below the
mouth of the St. Peters. They narrowly escaped the general chase that was
made for them by many Sioux warriors, crossing the Mississippi under a shower
of bullets. There Is nothing in modern warfare to surpass this daring ex-
P^«>^t' L. C. D.

402 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

Death of Hole-in-the-Day

[From the St. Paul Press, June 30, 1868.]

We received yesterday a telegram from St Cloud announcing
the fact that Hole-in-the-Day, the famous head chief of the
Mississippi Chippewas, as he assumed to be, and the bravest
warrior, had been assassinated by three of the Pillager Band
of Chippewas. We have since received the following particu-
lars of the manner of his death:

On Saturday last, between two and three o'clock in the af-
ternoon, three Chippewas, of the Leech Lake or Pillager In-
dians, called at his house, and asked where he was. His
woman replied that he had gone to Crow Wing. The Indians
appropriated three of his guns and went to Gull River, a short
distance above Crow Wing. They saw him and another In-
dian coming, riding in a buggy, and hid in the bushes on a
knoll by the road-side.

As the buggy passed them and went down the slope, they
fired at the back of the foe they feared to face, all their charges
taking effect in their victim. The other Indian sprang out of
the buggy and fled, when these Indians dragged Hole-in-the-
Day to the ground, and, to make sure work, stabbed him in
several places. They then took the horse and buggy, and made
their escape.

Th^ dead body of the chief was first discovered by Mr.
Charles A. Euffee, who is now at the Chippewa Agency.

We are not apprised of the motives which induced this assas-
sination of Hole-in-the-Day; but it may perhaps be attribut-
ed to an old jealousy of Hole-in-the-Day, which the Pillag-
ers have especially entertained toward him on account of his
assumption of being the head chief of the Mississippi bands of
Chippewas — pretension which they by no menas tolerated,
for the reason that they regarded the honors of that mythical
royalty as belonging more legitimately to their own chief.

Holc-in-the-Day 403

Hole-in-tlie-Day was regarded by them as a parvenu — &
kind of usurper — ^but his pretensions have always been sup-
ported with so much boldness, and he has won such pre-emi-
nence as a warrior, that they have not heretofore dared openly
to contest his position. 'No doubt this old jealousy has been
fanned by recent circumstances. Hole-in-the-Day has been
accustomed to play a conspicuous part in all treaty negotia-
tions with the Mississippi Chippewas, and from long practice
had become a cunning and unscrupulous intriguer, skilled in
all the mysteries of Indian diplomacy. He was the leading
spirit in the recent treaties for new reservations made with
that tribe^ and probably some discontent of the Pillagers, on
this account, may have instigated the assault — ^though, for that
matter, Hole-in-the-Day has had private quarrels enough on
his hands any day for many years to have killed a hundred
other men. Hole-in-the-Day was in some respects one of
the most extraordinary characters in Indian history.

There was something almost romantic in his reckless daring
on the war path. He was the Chippewa Cid, or Coeur de
Lion, from the gleam of whose battle-axe whole armies of
Saracen Sioux fled as before an irresistible fate. His exploits
would fill a book. His father, of the same name, was a great
warrior, who has conquered the chiefship of his tribe by his
bravery in combat, and his wisdom in council. The old chief,
Hole-in the Day, was killed in 1847, while crossing Flat
river in a Red river cart.

The first appearance of the younger Hole-in-the-Day in
public council was at Eond du Lac, Wisconsin, July, 1847.
At that time the Upper Country of the Mississippi, extending
to Lake Superior, was owned by the Chippewas of Lake Su-
perior and the Chippewas of the Mississippi. The Chippe-
was of Lake Superior were represented in force. The Chippe-
was of the Mississippi, headed by Hole-in-the Day, owing to
the great distance they had to travel, had but a small delega-
tion in attend aii(.e. Hole-in-the-Day was late in reaching the
council ground.

Prior to his coming^ several talks were held with the In-
27

404 Wisconsin Historical Collections [toi. v

dians, in which they admitted that they had allowed Hole-in-
the-Day's father to take the lead in their councils, but said
that were he then ali^e they would roake him take a backseat;
that his son was a mere boy, and were he there he would have
nothing to say; consequently it was useless to wait for him.
The commissioners, who were our fellow citizens, Hon. Henry
M. Ki^, and Issac A. Verplanck, of Buffalo, however,
thought differently, and waited. After the arrival of Hole-
in-the-Day, the council was formally opened. The Com-
missioners stated their business, and requested a reply from
the Indians. Hole-in-the^Day was led up to the stand by
two of his braves and made a speech to which all the Indians
present gave hearty and audible assent. The change in the
face of things at the appearance of Hole-in-the-Day showed
his bravery and commanding influence, but was also somewhat
amusing. Here were powerful chiefs of all the Chippewa
tribes, some of them seventy or eighty years old, who, before
his coming, spoke snecringly of him as a boy who could have
no voice in the council, saying there was no use in waiting for
him, but when he appeared, they became his most submissive
and obedient subjects; and this in a treaty in which a million
acres of land were ceded.

The terms of the treaty were concluded between the Com-
missioners and young Hole-in-the-Day alone. The latter,
after this was done, withdrew and sent word to the chiefs of
the Mississippi and Lake Superior bands to go and sign it.
After it had been duly signed by the Commissioners, the chief
head men and warriors, and witnessed by the interpreters and
other persons present, Hole-in-the-Day, who had not been
present at those little formalities, called upon the Commission-
ers, with two of his attendant chiefs, and had appended to the
treaty the following words:

"Fathers: The country our Great Father sent you to
purchase belongs to me. It was once my father's. He took
it from the Sioux. He, by his bravery, made himself the
head chief of the Chippewa nation. I am a greater man than

H ole-in-the-Day 40 5

my father was, for I am as brave as he waa, and on my moth-
er's side I am hereditary head chief of the nation. The land
you want belongs to me. If I say sell, our Great Father wiU
have it. If I say not sell, he will do without it. These In-
dians that you see behind me have nothing to say about it.

"I approve of this treaty and consent to the same. Fond
du Lac, August 3d, 1847.

"Po-GO-NE-SHIK, or

"HoLE-iN-THE Day, his X mark."

He inherited the traits of his father, who was noble, gener-
ous and brave — ^but treacherous as well. His father once enters
tained several chiefs, and the same night while they were sleep-
ing in his lodge, murdered them. Young Hole-in-the-Day
was jealous of a young half-breed, a man of education. On a
certain occasion this half-breed called upon Hole-in-the-Day
and remarked about a fine pistol the latter possessed. The
chief replied, "Would you like to see it?" and handed it to*
ward the half-breed, when it went off and killed him. It Ib
believed that the shooting was not purely accidental.

Hole-in-the-Day made a treaty in 1854 in which the In-
dian country was divided between the Chippewas of Lake Su-
perior and the Chippewas of the Mississippi. Since then his
influence has been principally among the Chippewas of th©
Mississippi. He has made many other treaties, and his in-
fluence in Indian affairs was prominent.

He made his influence in negotiations tell to his own per-
sonal advantage, and he managed, it is said, to extort very con-
siderable sums as the price of his favor. He spent with pro-
fusion, for he was as great a prodigal as he was a warrior.
Disdaining the humble bark wigwams of his tribe, he lived in
a good house near Crow Wing, and kept horses, and sur-
rounded himself, while his means lasted, with luxuries. He
kept posted in the affairs of the !N'ation by taking the St. Paid
Press, of which he was a regular subscriber, and other papers,
which he had read to him by an interpreter on every day of
their arrival. He had the proverbial Indian coolness.

4o6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. v

On the occasion of his first ride on the cars — ^the train going
at the rate of forty miles an hour — he was asked what he
thought of rail-roads. He replied that they were about as he
expected, but that they did not go as fast as he supposed.

Hole-in-the-Day was about forty years of age. He was,
like all his tribe who can afford the expensive luxury, a po-
lygamist; and in the course of his life has had several Indian
wives, successively, and at the same time. His last wife, for
whose sake he abandoned his seraglio, is a white woman whom
he encountered and married a year or two ago on one of his
frequent trips to Washington. One of his daughters was edu-
cated at the Catholic school in this city. He was in the city a
few weeks ago, and left with a friend a statement of the man-
ner in which the Indians had been treated by the Government
agents — a sure sign that Hole-in-the-Day's treasury needed
replenishing. We might fill columns with narratives of the
exploits in which Hole-in-the-Day figured as the hero, but
we postpone this to another time.

Murder of Hole-in-the-Day

[From the St. Cloud Journal, July 9, 1868.]
Mr. A. D. Prescott, who has been connected with the ad-
ministration of affairs at Chippewa Agency for several years
past, arrived in town yesterday evening from the Agency. He
was there at the time Hole-in-the-Day was killed, and says
that all the reports of the affair published thus far are more or
less incorrect. From Mr. Prescott we obtain the following,
which is in every particular authentic:

On the forenoon of June 27th, Hole-in-the-Day came to
the Agency from his home some two miles above. He was in
a handsome, light one-horse buggy, and with him was another
Chippewa, named Ojibbewa. They remained a short time,
and then went down to Crow Wing, stopping at the latter
place until half-past one o'clock.

Hole-in-the-Day 407

Shortly after Hole-in-the-Day had left the Agency for
Crow Wing, a party of nine Pillager Indians, from Leech
Lake, came, and after inquiring of Mr. Prescott the where-
abouts of Major Basse tt, the Agent, they repaired to a wig-
wam, and asked a squaw where Hole-in-the Day was. In a
short time they, too, started for Crow Wing, and reaching a
dense thicket about two-thirds of a mile below the Agency,
they secreted themselves. Here they awaited the return of the
chief. Just after he had passed, or was passing their am-
bush, they stepped forth to the rear and at the sides of the
buggy, and within eight feet of it. One of the party fired both
barrels of a shot-gun, the charges taking effect in Hole-iurthe
Day's head and neck. He never spoke, but, with a groan, fell
from the buggy dead. Another of the party stepped up and
discharged a load of shot through the prostrate form from side
to side, in the region of the heart; while another stabbed it in
the left breast. The body was then dragged to the side of the
road, and after being robbed of hat, blanket, and a gold watch
worth $250, left there. The party then took the horse and
buggy, with Ojibbeway, who had been made a temporary
prisoner at the out-set, (and from whose lips Mr. Prescott ob-
tained these facts,) and started for Holo-in-the-Day's house
by a back way, so as not to expose themselves to the Agency.
This was their first appearance at the chief's house. They
told his wives that they had killed him, and that they intended
taking what they wanted. Accordingly they supplied them-
selves with guns, saddles, shawls, blankets, fee. "No violence
was offered to any one except Hole-in-the-Day's white wife.
One of the party stepped up to her, and laid his hand on her
shoulder and said she must go with him. But Ojibbewa
interfered, and said if they touched a white person they would
call the wrath of all the whites upon them. This proved
effectual, and, after taking another horse, the party decamped
for Leech Lake, where their band is located.

There were no chiefs with the party, which was composed
of worthless members of the Pillager Band. Various reasons
are assigned for the murder, and it is impossible to tell which

4o8 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.t

is correct Who will succeed as chief is not yet known — ^most
probably his son. Our readers will be kept fully posted in
any further developments that may occur. Matters in the In-
dian country are quiet, and no trouble is apprehended.

Hole-in-the-Day was buried in the Catholic cemetery at
Crow Wing, with the Stars and Stripes floating over his grave.

Additional Note on Hole-in-the-Day

We learn from Neill's Eiatory of Minneaota, that on the afternoon of May
15th, 1850, a number of naked and painted Sioux braves were seen hurrying
through the streets of St. Paul, ornamented with all the attire of war, and
panting for the scalps of their enemies. A few hours before, the youthful and
war-like head chief of the Chippewas, Hole-in-the-Day, having secreted hi>
canoe in the retired gorge which leads to the cave, in the upper amburbs, with
two or three associates, had crossed the river, and, almost in sight of the
citizens of the town, had attacked a small party of Sioux, and murdered and
scalped one man. To appease the Sioux, Gov. Ramsay granted a parole to
several of the Sioux then confined at Fort Snelling for participating In a
previous massacre of whites.

A correspondent of the New York Tribune writing from St. Paul, early in
1851, thus speaks of this daring exploit of the young Chippewa chief : "Young
HoIe-ln-the-Day is about twenty-four or twenty-five years old, well formed, with
a thoughtful and even melancholy expression of countenance. He Is said to
be exceedingly ambitious, and utterly regardless of danger. Last spring;
merely to show his daring, he crossed the river a short distance above St.
Paul, with but a single attendant, killed and scalped a Sioux almost within
sight of one of their villages ; then recrossing, he made but very little haste to
rejoin his tribe, although pursued by a large body of Sioux, whom he suffered
to pass him, and while they were employed in searching for him, he took oc-
casion to amuse himself by engaging in the war-dance !"

Governor Ramsay soon after convened a council of the Chippewas and Sioux
at Fort Snelling, and made an earnest effort to bring about a peace between
those belligerent tribes — which was easily effected, so far as fair promises were
concerned, as had been done many times before, and only to be broken on the
first convenient opportunity. During the conference the Sioux, on one occasion,
left the council en masse — having taken umbrage at the presence of ladlee
there, saying "they thought they were to meet Chippewas, not women." Hole-
in-the-Day adroitly turned the matter to his dwn advantage, saying, very
politely, "that he was happy to see so many sweet women there, and that thep
W€re all welcome, with their angelic smiles, to a seat on his side of the house.**
The ladies, however, chose to withdraw, the young Chippewa chief shaking
each one cordially by the hand. The Sioux now returned, and the conference
was resumed.

We next hear of Hole-in-the-Day during the winter of 1850-'51, when he
made a visit to St. Paul, to represent the suffering condition of his people.
He addressed the Legislature in relation to the wants of the Chippewas, and
also made a speech at the Presbyterian Church, which attracted a great crowd.
He, In true Indian style, narrated the sufferings of his people, and begged, In
the inimitable manner of his race ; and a committee was appointed to solicit
subscriptions and contributions for their relief. Despite these humane efforts,
hunger is said, during the winter, to have driven some of these poor people
to cannibalism.

The Prairie Du Chlen Courier, of March 25th, 1858, furnishes us the follow-
ing paragraph : "Hole-in-the-Day, the celebrated Chippewa chief, the savage

Hole-in-the-Day 409

who has seven wives, and the hero of the whiskey duel which created the most
Intense excitement throughout the North-West, has been honoring our citj
with his presence for several days past. He is a splendid specimen of man-
hood, well proportioned, and walks with » grace that would become a Roman
Bmperor in the palmy days of Rome. He was dressed in the latest style, and
appeared to feel his oats' pretty well. The other day he purchased no less
than thirty-two p«irs of women's shoes. During his late sojourn at Washing-
ton, he imbibed a contempt for moccasins, and is determined that his squaws
shall resemble white women in some respects. The chief is said to be a
perfect savage, having slain sever*! men; but be that as it may, he is the
most

Gentle mannered cut-throat
That ever scuttled ship!'
and if ever he did take a scalp, we are sure he did it with such a grace, that
his victim must have thanked him for his polite manner of executing that
savage accomplishment. He went up the river on Monday."

In the autumn of 1865, it was said of him in the newspapers, that he wa«
at that time one of the solid men of Minnesota, so far as money goes ; that he
had a splendid farm of one mile square, with a comfortable dwelling, situated
about two miles above the Chippewa Agency, a large stock of horses and cattle,
and an income of $3,000 a year, free from income tax ; that he was loyal to
the Union, and regretted that the Government did not accept his offer to
raise a battalion of Chippewas, and lead them forth upon the war-path to aid
In fighting the battles of the Union ; and that he had Just been visiting St.
Paul, sitting to an artist for a life-size portrait.

About this period, his large framed dwelling house was burned to the ground,
and the Government gave him some $6,000 as a compensation for his loss.
Hole-in-the-Day contented himself with re-placing his lost dwelling with a com-
fortable log-house ; and expended the money Government gave him principally
In the purchase of stock, turning his attention largely to that branch of agri-
culture. He had a dozen head of good horses, and put In quite large crops on
bis farm.

It is related, that if there is any one thing that an Indian dreads more than
another, it is our modern appliances for travel. This was exemplified, in the
winter of 1865-'66, when Hole-in-the-Day. and his sub-chiefs were on their
way to Washington. Arrived at that wonderful structure, the Suspension Bridge,
over the Niagara River, just below the Falls, they were opposed to risking
their precious lives upon any such contrivance, preferrng to cross the foaming,
boiling surge in a canoe. But they were compelled to follow the fortunes In
the car ; and so they made their preparations for bidding farewell to earth and
friends. They threw themselves flat upon the bottom of the cars, rolled them-
selves up in their blankets, and groaned hideously and incessantly until they
were fairly upon terra firma again. L. C. D.

4IO Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi. y

Gen. Cass at St. Marie 1820

As an appropriate appendage to Gen. Ellis' sketch, of Gov.
Doty, and Eev. Dr. Bi-nnson's paper on Hole-in-tlie-Day,
we give tbe following incident, referred to in those narratives
and which we take from the Milwaukee Wisconsin of Sept. 11,
1855, relating to Gov. Cass' expedition, in 1820, to Lake Su-
perior, and the Upper Mississippi, of which Gov. Doty was
one of the party:

At the 8ault, an important incident occurred, which illus-
trated the true courage of Gen. Cass. He certainly exhibited
file most lofty traits in this calm fearlessness in the midst of
imminent danger. Such a history puts to flight all political
fables about his destitution of courage. The author is the ed-
itor of the Toledo Blade, a political opponent. He obtained
the facts on the recent excursion of the Planet, from C. 0.
Trowbridge, of Detroit, who was one of the batteaux party,
thirty-five years ago;

Upon arriving at the Sault Ste Marie, the party entered into
negotiations with the Chippewa Indians for the purchase of
a piece of land upon which the garrison now stands. The lav-
ish expenditure of British money in the annual presentation
of gifts to the natives, and the niggardly policy of our Govern-
ment towjird them, had inspired the Indians with respect for
the one nation, and contempt for the other. The war, then
lately closed, had increased British influence to our injury,
and the presence of a British garrison on the Canadian side of
the river, was a fountain of bad counsel to the Ked Men, and
a place of safety in case of need. The feelings, therefore, of
the Indians were not friendly towards this expedition, and the
enterprise was one of great danger.

Gen. Cass invited the chiefs to his tent, in the center of

1869] Hole-in-the-Day 411

which was a pile of tobacco, a part of which was to be smoked
on the occasion, and the residue presented to the Indians at
the close of the council. The chiefs appeared en costume sans
culottes, sans everything save the "breech cloth." The leader,*
a tall, muscular fellow of thirty years, with the devil in his
ugly face, was an exception. He wore, beside the breech cloth,
a single eagle's feather, gracefully attached to the top of his
head, a red coat with narrow skirts, and two gold epaulets of
a British Major General. '^Uncle Sam" dispensed no such
favors to his red children. Gov. Cass explained the object of
his mission to be the cultivation of friendship between them
and their deadly Sioux enemies, and also between all the red
children and their Great Father, the President. To this end our
Government had planted military posts among the Sioux on
the Mississippi, and wished to do the same at that point. The
Governor also explained that, although by the treaty of Green-
ville, the territory at the Sault belonged to us — it having previ-
ously been purchased of their fathers, once by the great King of
the Way-we-te-go-che, or Frenchmen, and subsequently by the
Sagonash, or Englishmen — ^yet he was willing to pay them
also for what he wished, a parcel four miles square.

The chiefs were surly and taciturn, and argument and coax-
ing were of no avail, and Governor Cass was compelled to tell
them, that as sure as the sun should rise on the morrow, so
surely would their Father the President establish the proposed
military post. The Governor advised them to listen to friendly
counsel, and avail themselves of the last opportunity for ob-
taining compensation. Here the Governor paused for a reply,
and ordered his interpreter, William Riley, to light the pipe.
Having smoked thereof, it was offered to the chief, who re-
fused it, and committed the grossest political insult known to
the savage code, by kicking over the pile of tobacco, and rush-
ing out with his train of chieftains.

The Indians walked rapidly up the river about half a mile,

*Sas-sa-ba was the name of this chief: see Smith's Life and Times of Gen.
Cass, p. 128. Having lost a brother, who foug^ht under Tecnmseh, at the
Thames, he ever after cherished an Implacable enmity against the Americans.
He was accidently drowned, while under the Influence of liquor, near Sault
Ste. Marie, September 25, 1822. L. C. D.

412 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

to a rising ground wJiore their lodges were erected, and im-
mediately hoisted in front of their camp, a large British flag.
This act was reported to Gov. Cass, who, upon the instant,
oommanding none to accompany him save the interpreter,
walked rapidly into the camp of these excited and now deadly
savage Eed Men, seized the British flag, threw it upon the
ground, hroke the staff, and ordering the interpreter to roll up
the flag and carry it to the Governor's camp, and told the Ind-
ians that if they dared to repeat the insult, he would fire upoB
them. The Indians stood amazed at the daring of the Gov-
ernor, thus alone to enter their camp, and thus to threaten
them, as the entire force of his expedition consisted of eleven
soldiers, twelve Canadian voyageurs, nine friendly Indians, a
suite of eight, and a small escort to that point of twenty-five
soldiers, under Lieut. John Pierce.

In ten minutes from the time Governor Cass with such fear-
lessness carried from the camp of these warriors the flag, every
woman and child, and their tent equipage, were on their
way in bark canoes from the Indian camp towards the British
fort across the river, and Geo. Johnston informed the Gover-
nor that an attack on the coming night was planned by the
furious warriors. Of the nine friendly Indians — aU save one
noble fellow — ^surrendered their arms, and resolved to remain
neutral. The suite buckled on their belts, and armed to the
teeth, were out with their small band of soldiers, as dark a
night as ever dragged its weary hours, in momentary expecta-
tion of the scalping knife and tomahawk of a numerically su-
perior force of deadly savages, fired by hatred, and by the cer-
tainty of crushing their mortal foe at a blow. Day dawned
after a sleepless night, and this band of brave men were spared
a scene which would inevitably have cost many lives.

It was subsequently ascertained that a deliberate plan had
been formed for the massacre of every one of Gov. Cass' party
upon its entrance into the country, and that several hundred
warriors were within call near the Sault at the time of the
council, for thut purpose. This plan was thwarted, in part, by
the daring bravery of Gov. Cass, on the occasion of his peril-

H ole-in-the-Day 413

ous visit to their camp, and particularly through the efforts of
Mrs. Johnston, mother of Geo. Johnston, v:n.d daughter of the
Great Chief of Lake Superior — ^who passed the whole of that
fearful night with the hostile chiefs in unremitted efforts to
dissuade them from their blood-thirsty resolution. From a
very interesting daily journal of that remarkable canoe ex-
pedition along the hunting grounds of untameable savages,
kept by Mr. Trowbridge, we copy an entry made on the morn-
ing after the expected attack. In speaking of the friendly in-
terference of Mrs. Johnston, the diary says:

^'This influence, and the courage that never knew fear on
the part of our chief, have saved probably hundreds of lives,
and given us peaceable entrance to a country whose territory
skirts an inland sea, co-extensive with the Baltic, and which
must ere loug be added by cession to the millions upon mil-
lions of acres already composing Uncle Sam's farm."

We should have before mentioned, that, in the following af-
ternoon another council was held, the amende honorable made,
and the treaty signed.

In writing to Mr. Trowbridge recently, and asking him to
refresh his memory with reference to Hole-in-the-Day hav-
ing been present, and taken a prominent part in the affair at
Sault St. Marie in 1820, as mentioned by Rev. Dr. Brunson,
in his sketch of that chief, he kindly responded as follows,
which we give entire, though in many respects covering the
same ground as given in the preceding statement, yet fumish-
iag additional details in others:

"Dr. Brunson's sketch is, in respect to Hole-in-the-Day,
only one more proof that it is dangerous to trust tradition.
Hole-in-the-Day no doubt told the Doctor, or his informant,
Ijiat in the little affair at Sault St. Marie, in 1820, between
Gov. Cass and the Chippewas, he came to the Governor's aid.
But there is an alibi- — Hole-in-the-Day was not there. I
recollect the circumstances as well as if they occurred but yes-
terday, and my journal of the events is now before me. The
account in the Toledo paper, to which you refer, I have not seen
since it was published, but is was correctly stated. Without

414 Wisconsin Historical Collections [voi.v

knowing whether I repeat what is there related, I will mention
that the Governor took from Detroit one canoe crew of In-
dians, under command of Ke-wa-kwish-kum, an Ottawa chief
from Grand Rapids, Michigan. At Mackinaw, where we
stopped several days, a very handsome, athletic young Indian,
whom we called Buck, probably as a translation of his Indian
name, was strongly recommended by Biddle and Drew, In-
dian traders, as likely to be serviceable, and the fellow plead
so hard to go, that the Governor took him.

At the Sault St. Marie, the conference with the Chippewas
took place in the Governor's wall tent, the sides of which were
rolled up, so that it was a tent a Vabri. The Chippewas had
their lodges on the American side, some distance, say a third
of a mile above the Governor's camp. My impression is, that
when they came to the conference, they had just come from
the British side. You are aware, that the British had, during
the war of 18 12-' 15, been profuse in the distribution of presr
ents, and our Government had not. The consequence was, a
settled hostility on the part of the Indians. The object of the
Casis expedition was to carry our flag through their country,
assert our rights, arrange for a military post at St. Marie, and
look for the Ontonagon copper rock. Q<w. Cass informed this
little squad of Chippewas of this design. He told them of the
double purchase of their territory by the French and English;
read and explained to them the treaty of Greenville in 1796,
of Spring Wells in 1815, and of Fort Harrison in 1816; and
informed them that their Great American Father intended to
place some troops at the Sault St. Marie, and wanted a small
piece of land, for which he was ready to pay a third time.

I must describe the appearance of the Chippewa chief. Be-
ginning at the top, an eagle's feather, bear's grease, vermillion
and indigo, a red British military coat, with two enormous
epaulets, a large British silver medal, breech-clout, leggings
and moccasins. Thus decked off, he arose and said gruffly,
that they did not wish to sell their land.* The Governor in-

♦ Schoolcraft's Narrative says : "A brilliant assembly of chiefs, dressed in
costly broadcloths, feathers, epaulets, medals and silver-wares of British fabric,
and armed from the manufactories of Birmingham."

1869]

H ole-in-the-Day 415

formed them that their fathers had twice sold it, and been paid
for it, but that ^'to make things pleasant," he would buy it
again. He had a quantity of tobacco, in the center of the tent,
for distribution. He offered, through the interpreter, the usual
pipe, after smoking — in his way, which was, to wait till the in-
terpreter had fixed the pipe, and then blow the smoke out, in-
stead of inhaling it himself. The chief rejected the pipe, and
rushed out of the tent — ^not through the door, but under the
side.* His men followed him. They went up to their camp.
This was late in the forenoon. Soon after, the women of the
camp were seen going towards the river with burdens on
their backs; and then, it was discovered, that the British
flag was hoisted in front of their lodges. As soon as the Gov-
ernor saw this, he called William Riley, the interpreter, and
walked hastily to the Indian camp. He refused to allow any
one else to accompany him. He went unarmed. We watched
with deep solicitude. We saw him pull down the flag, throw
it to the ground, and point to it while he looked towards the
Indians, who were then outside of the lodges. Riley told us,
when they returned to camp, that the Governor rebuked the
Indians, and told them if they raised the flag there again, he
would fire on them. Riley, by command of the Governor,
brought the staff of the flag to our camp.f

Early in the evening, George Johnston came to the Gov-
ernor, at the request of his mother, to tell him that the Chip-
pewas intended to attack the camp during the night. Imme-
diately the camp was put in a state of defence. Sentinels were
posted, muskets were rubbed up, and common guns and horse-
men's pistols, with which the young gentlemen of the Gover-
nor' , suite were armed, were loaded, and orders and counter-
signs given. We had a guard of soldiers who accompanied us
thus far, under Lieut. John PierceJ, brother of the late Pres-

*"He drew," says Schoolcraft, "his lance, and stuck it firmly in the ground
before him, and assumed a look of savage wlldness, and kicked away the pres-
ents which had been laid before him." This was Sas-sa-ba.

tSchooIcraft says that the governor brought "the flag to his camp. We had
sixty men; they had eighty." Mr. Trowbridge adds, "I see that my Journal
says the same as to the flag and men."

tJohn Sullivan Pierce, a native of New Hampshire, entered the army as «
Third Lieutenant, in April. 1814 ; was promoted to a First Lieutenant in 1818,
and resigned in February, 1823.

4i6 Wisconsin Historical Collections [yoi.v

ident of that name, besides eight, who oontinued with rm
throughout the expedition, under Lieut. Mackay.* It was
now discovered that our Indians faltered. They came with their
chief to the Governor, and said they would give up their arms
and lie down, and take their chance of death; but they would
not fire upon their brothers. Young Buck stood aloof. When
the chief had finished, Buck walked forward, with a, defiant
air, and, addressing the Governor, alluded to his having been
reluctantly received at Mackinaw, and now he was going to
make good the pledge of Biddle and Drew. "He wanted,"
he said, "a good rifle, and wanted no one to relieve him ; and if
those fellows dared to approach our camp, they would pay dear-
ly for their temerity." We put out the fires and lights, and
watched all night. It was very dark ; but all were in fine spirits
and "spoiling for a fight." Day broke, and we all found our-
selves wearing our scalps.

In a short time we learned that Mrs. Johnston, who was a
chief's daughter,t had spent the night with her friends and
relatives at their * amp, and that they heartily repented of their
rashness. They were now desirous to see their Father and
apologize, and would be glad to sell him a piece of land for a
fort. Accordingly a conference was had, the Chippewas apol-
ogized, and the treaty of cession was made. We afterwards
heard that the Chippewas on Lake Superior were greatly sur-
prised to see us, after having been apprised by runners that
we were all to be massacred at the Sault as we passed up.

Now here you see, my dear sir, that we had no aid from
any one but Mrs. Johnston, and from her only as a diplomat,
and that the real hero of the scene, after Governor Cass, of
course, was the Indian Buck. Whether Hole^in-the-Day was
there I do not know. I have no recollection of hearing anything
from him till long after that event. "So much for Buck."

♦-^neaa Mackay, of New York, entered the service, in the ordnance de-
partment, in March, 1813, and rose through several grades, to a brevet Colonel
for meritorious services In the Mexican war, and died at St. Louis, May 28,
1850.

tMrs. Johnston, says Schoolcraft, was "a woman of excellent Judgment and
good sense," and became the wife of John Johnston, an educated Irish gen-
tleman, who early settled as a trader at Sauit St. Marie; where they raised
a fine family of children, and had them well educated. Mr. Schoolcraft mar-
ried one of the daughters, who was an accomplished woman, wrote an
exquisite hand, and composed with ability — she was, in a marked degree, gentle.

Index

Abebl, Waldo, member Executive Com-
mittee, 1866, 38.
Abercrombie, Gen., repulsed, 117.
Adams', President, pardons Indians, 153,

202.
African newspapers, file of, 19.
Aklns, — , tried for Indian killing, 271.
Alexander, Gen., in Black Hawk war,

259.
Allen, Prof. C. H., donor, 27, 28.
Allen, Prof. Jonathan, early teacher,

849.
Allen, Hon. Thos. S., member Execu-
tive Committee, 1867-'68, vii, vlii ;
donor, 169, 170 ; remarks on Gen.
Dodge, 177.
Algonquin Indians, 70, 71, 117.
Allouez, Father, early missionary, 322.
American Antiquarian Society, 27, 170.
American Pur Company, 96, 237, 379.
American Philosophical Society, donor,

27.
American maps, early, in Library, 21.
Ange, De St., father and son, 65, 107,

121, 122.
An Indian Race for Life, a myth, 158.
Annual Reports of the Executive Com-
mittee, 1, 23, 161.
Apple River Fort, settlement, 287.
Appleton, Lawrence University at, 349.
Armstrong, Mrs. Elizabeth, heroic con-
duct of. 287-90.
Artagnal, M. De., mentioned, 94.
Artaguette, — D', mentioned, 121.
Assumption, Fort L', 113.
Astor, John Jacob, 237.
Atkinson, Gen.. 152, 153, 155, 157,
178, 194, 202, 259, 260, 287, 291,
310, 316.
Atlases. See Maps and Atlases.
Atwater, Caleb, early writer on WIsj-

consln, 171.
Atwood, Gen. David, member Executive
Com., 1860-68, vll, vlll, 32-38; donor
to Cabinet, 29; eulogy on Gov. Har-
vey, 48.

Atwood, Hon. J. P., member Executiv*
Committee, 1860-62, 32-34; eulogy
on Dr. J. W. Hunt, 45.

Atwood & Rublee, donors, 166.

Australian newspapers in Library, 19.

Autographs In Library, 169.

Ba-be-si-kdn-bab-i, or Big Curly Head,
a Chippewa chief, 400.

Bad Axe Battle, 261-264, 291-292, 807,
309, 316.

Badges worn by Indians, 125, 131.

Bailey, B., early Prairie Du Chlem
pioneer, 240.

Bally, H. H., mentioned, 276.

Baird, Hon. Henry S., a Vice President,
1862-'68, 34-38, vli, vHi ; cited, 331.

Baker, Hon. Charles M., mentioned,
341, 343.

Baker, Maj. Daniel, mentioned, 160.

Baker's Trading House, mentioned, 895.

Baldwin, J. D., donor, 27.

Ballard, Mrs., donor, 27.

Bangs, Merwin & Co., donors, 165.

Banking, early, at Prairie Du Chien,
272.

Baraga, Father, Catholic missionary,
379.

Barber, Samuel, donor, 29, 168.

Barnard, Hon. Henry, lectures on edu-
cation in Wisconsin, 1846, 342, 369.

Barre, Gov. De La, mentioned, 67, 110,
111.

Barrette's Ferry, 257.

Barrette, — , killed, 258.

Barrows, Willard, on Black Hawk*8
death, 305.

Barry, Hon. A. C, State Superintend-
ent, 262-65.

Barstow, Wm. A., Secretary of State,
41.

Bartlett, J. R., donor, 27.

Barton, Capt. C. H., donor, 29.

Barton, Mrs. S. A., donor, 29.

Bassett, Major, Indian Agent, 407.

41 8 Wisconsin Historical Collections

Bates, J. R., donor, 27.

Battle of Bad Axe, 261-64, 291-92, 307,
809, 316.

Battle of Wisconsin Heiglits, 260.

Batture Aux Fievres, » Sioux village,
125, 131, 136.

Bay Verte, mentioned, 115.

Beaubien, Gen. John B., mentioned, 217.

Beaucliamp, a brave half breed, 148,
150.

Beauharnois, M. De, 77, 86, 87, 92-95,
104, 106-108, 113.

Beaujeu. See De Beaujeu.

Beaumont, Dr. Wm., mentioned, 248,
257.

Becket, — , hung at Prairie Du Chien,
255.

Begon, M., Tntendant of Canada, 85.

Belger, Christian H., donor, 168.

Bell, Andrew, translator of Garneau's
Canada, 89.

Beloit College, noticed, 349.

Benedict, S. G., member of Executive
Committee, 186a-'68, 32-38, vii, viii.

Bennet, Hon. A. I., a Vice President,
1860^'61, 32, 33.

Benton, Hon. Charles S., a Vice Presi-
dent, 1863-'64, 35, 36.

Benton Female Academy, 349, 356.

Bertonniere Father De La, mentioned,
87.

Berry, Capt. Fortunatus, In Black
Hawk war, 286.

Bl-aus-wah, a Chippewa chief, 401.

Bienville, — , goes against the Chlcka-
saws, 113.

Bicknell, Rev. S. S., early teacher, 349.

Big Curly Head, a Chippewa chief, 400.

Big Month, a Chippewa chief, 129, 130,
139 141, 400.

Billing^, Col. Henry M., mentioned, 341.

Binding Furfd needed, 170.

Black Hawk, restless In 1825, 216;
War, origin of, 204 ; Fonda's account,
259-64 ; a reminiscence of, 287 ; bat-
tle of Peckatonlca, 313, 314; battle
of Wisconsin Heights, 260; battle of
Bad Axe, 261-64, 291-92, 307, 809,
316; battle of Bad Axe, incident,
828 ; WInnebagoes, services, 806 :
Sioux, services, 310; capture of Black
Hawk, 293-97, 808; dells, and Black
Hawk's cave, 295, 298 ; autobiography
vindicated, 300 ; death, and remains,
305.

Bliss, .T. S., donor, 29, 169.

Bloody Run, mentioned, 265-68.

Blunt, G. W., mentioned, 276.

Boat song, early, 100.

Boilvin, Col. Nicholas, Indian Agent,

127, 128, 145, 324.
Boiseley, — , an early Wisconsin

pioneer, 228-34, 250-53, 260.
Boishebert, Sieur De, mentioned, 120.
Borup, B. W,, mentioned, 379.
Boston Public Library, donor, 27.
Bouthillier, Francis, early Prairie Du

Chien settler, 324.
Bovee, T. H., donor, 29.
Boxer, an Indian, dies of cholera, 265.
Boyer, Henry, early teacher, 334.
Brace, H., mentioned, 276.
Bracken, Gen. Charles, cited, 188, 333.
Braddock's Defeat, 115.
Brigham, Col. Ebenezer, referred to,

235, 317, 319.
Brisbois, Antoine, early Prairie Du

Chien settler, 267.
Brisbois, B. W-, cited, 158, 270.
Brisbois, Lieut. Charles, mentioned,

278, 279.
Brisbois, J., early Prairie du Chien

pioneer, 240.
Brisbois, Michael, mentioned, 272, 276,

324.
British liberality to Indians, 388, 889,

410, 411 414.
Brltton, Rev. J. B., member executive

committee, 1861, 33.
Brooks, S. M., paints portrait, 28.
Bross, C. E., donor, 27.
Brown, Beriah, early friend of the

Society, 17.
Brown, Rev. Mr., of La Crosse, on Gov.

Harvey, 50, 55.
Brunson, Rev. Dr. Alfred, contributed

historical paper, 16; a vice-president,

1860-'61, 32, 83; cited, 205; early

settler, 273, 276; sketch of Hole-ln-

the-Day, 387 ; comments on, 410, 413,

416.
Brusha, a Chippewa Chief, mentioned,

881, 390.
Buck, an Indian, heroic conduct of,

414, 416.
Bug-on-a-ke-shlg, or Hole-ln-the-Day,

40O.
Buisson, Sieur. See De Bulsson.
Bull, N. B., donor, 29.
Burnett, Hon. Thos. P., edited first

vol. Sup. Court Reports, 172; char-
acter and death, 27.
Burr, Addison, donor, 168.
Bushnell, Prof. J. J., early teacher, 349.

Ind

419

Butler, Prof. James D., member Execu-
tive Com., 1860-'68, 32-38, vii, viii.

Butte Des Morts, mentioned, 82, 95,
102-3, 179, 225.

Buzzard, father of One-eyed-De-Kau-
ray, 207.

Cadott, — , early La Polnte pioneer,
324.

Cadle, Rev. Richard P., early teacher,
327, 330, 353, 355.

California, photographic views, 168.

Calkins, Col. B. A., member Executive
Committee, 1866-68, 38, vil.

Calllere, Chevalier, mentioned, 69, 73,
76.

Cameron, Hon. Angus, a vice Presi-
dent, 1860-67, 38, vil, viii.

Campbell, Rev. Mr., early teacher, 334.

Canadian documents, 64 ; De Lou-
vigny's Mackinaw expedition, 65 ;
De Louvigny's petition and defence,
67 ; De Louvigny's disobedience of
orders, 73 ; De Calliere and De Cham-
pigny on De Louvigny, 76 ; De Lou-
vigny's projected expedition, 77 ;
origin of the Fox war, 78; De
Louvigny's expedition against the
Foxes, 1716, 78 ; De Louvigny's ser-
vices in the Fox war, 80 ; Charle-
Toix's account of De Louvigny's ex-
pedition, 81 ; death of De Louvigny,
86 ; renewal of the Fox war, 1728, 86 ;
Crespel's account of De Llgnery's
expedition, 87; offlcial account of
De Llgnery's expedition, 92 ; La Butte
Des Morts, by W. J, Snelling, 95;
allied Indian expedition against the
Foxes, 1729, 104; new expedition
against the Foxes, 1730, 106; D«
Villlers defeats the Foxes, 1730, 107;
Draper's Historical Notices, 108.

Car-a-mau-ne, a Winnebago chief, 181.

Cardinell, — , pioneer settler of Prairie
Du Chien, 323.

Carley, Dr. D. W., mentioned, 346.

Carpenter, S. D., donor, 26 ; Wisconsin
writer, 171.

Carpenter, S. H., aids In re-organizlng
the Society, 15 ; member of E)xecu-
tlve Committee, 1863-68, 35-38, vil,
vlll ; donor, 28.

Carr, Prof. B. S., member of Executive
Committee, 1866-68, 38, vii, viii;
eulogy on Dr. J. W. Hunt, 39; en-
gaged on N. T. Geological Burrey,

40 ; instructor in Castleton Medical

College, 40.
Carver's Travels, cited, 123, 171, 297.
Case, F. W., donor, 27.
Cass, Hon. Lewis, furnished historical

documents, 65, 91 ; expedition of

1820, 370, 388, 389, 400, 410-16;

treaty at Prairie Du Chien, 1825,

123, 391; holds treaty at Butte Des

Morts, 1827, 224, 225; Winnebago

out-break, 156, 157, 200.
Cassville, its early promise, 272.
Castleman, Dr. A. L., Wisconsin writer,

171.
Catlin, George, cited, 65.
Catlin, Hon. John, liberal donation of,

170; Honorary Vice President, 1867-

'68, vil, viii.
Cavagnal, Maj. De, served in Fox war,

93.
Center, Lieut., mentioned, 373.
Cha-e-tar, a Winnebago Indian, 295-97.
Chacornicle, Sieur De, mentioned, 74.
Chadbourne, President P. A., member

Executive Committee, 1868, viii.
Chah-post-kaw-kaw, father of One-Eyed-

De-Kau-ray, 297.
Chambers, Gov. John, mentioned, 305.
Champlgny, M. De, mentioned, 74, 76.
Chandler, Hon. D. H., editor Sup.

Court Reports, 172.
Chapin, Rev. Dr. A. L., early educator,

349.
Chapman, Dr. C. B., member Executive

Committee, 32, 33, 38, vil.
Chapman, Silas, donor, 27 ; early

teacher, 348 ; secretary of Normal

Regents, 348.
Charlevoix, — , cited, 64, 81, 85, 400;

explores the west, 121 ; history of

New France, 171.
Chartres, Fort, mentioned, 119-122.
Chazel, M. De, Intendant of Canada, 85.
Chenvlet, F., early Prairie Du Chien

settler, 240.
Cherrler, Flavin, early Prairie Du Chien

settler, 240.
Cherokee Phoenix, newspaper file in

Library, 19.
Chicago, In 1818, 158-60; In 1825,

216, 218; In 1827, threatened by

Indians, 225 ; in 1834, not promising,

370.
Chicago Historical Society, donor, 27,

28, 164.
Chickasaws, bravest nation of Louisiana,

86, 113.

42 o Wisconsin Historical Collections

Chlc-hon-sic, or Little Bceuf, pardoned,
153, 202.

Childs, Col. Ebenezer, cited, 185, 351.

China newspapers, in Library, 19.

Chippewas, mentioned, 103, 104, 111,
123-41, 247, 273, 274 ; their language,
380; see sketches of Hole-in-the-
Day, elder and younger ; see Cass, at
St. Marie, in 1820.

Cholera at Prairie Du Chien, 1832,
259.

Chou-ke-ka, or The Ladle, a Winnebago
Chief, 297.

Christinaux Indians, mentioned, 117.

Clark, — , an early miner, 318.

Clark, Cftpt., in Black Hawk war, 285.

Clark, Dr., of Racine, efforts to save
Gov. Harvey, 62.

Clark, George T., donor, 169.

Clark, J. A., mentioned, 278.

Clark, John H., member Executive Com-
mittee, 1864-'68, 36-38, vii, viii.

Clark, Julius T., member Executive
Committee, 1861-'63, 33-35; remin-
iscences of Hole-in-the-Day, 378.

Clark, Capt. Nathan, noticed, 132.

Clark, Gen. William, mentioned, 123,
157, 308.

Clarke, Robert, donor, 27, 28.

Clerin, Sieur, mentioned, 70.

Clifford, R. A., paints Judge Miller's
portrait, 167.

Clinton, E. D., mentioned, 348.

Coates, S. D., paints and presents por-
trait, 167.

Coffin. — , killed, 255.

Coin, early, donation of, 168.

Colby, W. M., donor, 168, 169.

Cole, A. J., donor, 29.

Cole, Downing and Dudley Diggings,
SIS.

Collins, Gen,, of New York, 371, 372.

Collins, Hon. A. L., on Gov. Harvey,
61-53.

Colman, Col. Edward, friendly offices,
23.

Columbian Pur Company, 125.

Confederate script, 168.

Connor, — , Indian Agent, 203.

Conover, Prof. O. M., aided In re-or-
ganlzlng the Society, 15 ; treasurer,
186a-'68, 32-38, vii, vill ; moves
adoption of Hunt resolutions, 45 ;
edits Supreme Court Reports, 172.

Constantinople papers, In Library, 19.

Continental and Colonial currency, 168.

Contrecoeur, — , mentioned, 115.

Corn, first raised in Grant county, 315.

Corne, Chevalier De La, mentioned,
114.

Cornell, Hon. Ezra, donor, 165,

Craig, Hon. A. J., State Superintend-
ent, 367.

Crane, Dr. N. J., donor, 168, 169.

Crawford, Miss, early teacher, 325.

Crespel, Father Emanuel, cited. 64, 86,
91, 92.

Crespel, Louis, mentioned, 86.

Crooks, Ramsay, in Wisconsin, 1827,
156.

Croswell, Caleb, noticed, 341.

Curtis, Daniel, early teacher, 325, 331,
332, 353.

Curtiss, Maj. D. S., Wisconsin writer,
171.

Curts' Settlement, mentioned, 273.

Curts, W. R., mentioned, 278.

Dahkotahs. See Sioux.
Dandly, — , mentioned, 276.
D'Artaguette, — , mentioned, 121.
Davenport, Col., mentioned, 300-304.
Davidson, W., personal narrative, 317-

20.
Davis Hon. M. M., a Vice President,

1860-'61, 32, 33.
Dawson, Henry B., donor, 27 ; histori-
cal series, 166.
Dean, Hon. E. B., member Executive

Com., 1865-'68, 37, 38, vii, vlii; on

committee on Dodge resolutions, 177.
Dean, John S., donor, 27.
Dean, Hon. N. W., donor, 29.
D'Artagnal, SI., mentioned, 94.
De Beauharnois, Gov., 77, 86, 87, 92-95,

104, 106, 108, 113.
De Beaujeu, M., served In Fox war,

1728, 94; historical notice of, 63,

115.
De Bolshebert, Sieur, mentioned, 120.
De Cavagnal, Maj., mentioned, 93.
De Charcornlcle, Sieur, mentioned, 74.
De Champigny, M., mentioned, 74, 76.
De Chazel, Intendant of Canada, 85.
De Frontenac, Gov., mentioned, 65, W,

70, 109. 112.
De Grals, SleuT, mentioned, 77.
De Grand Pre, Sieur, mentioned, 77.
D' Hosta, Sieur, noticed, 67.
De Kau-ray, Family, 155, 156, 297.
De Kau-ray, or Chou-ke-ka. or the

Ladle, 155, 297.
De Kau-ray, or Scha-chlp-ka-ka, or The

White War Eagle, 128, 153-56, 207.

Index

42 I

De Kau-ray, or Chali-post kaw-kaw, or Dickson, Capt. Joseph, in Black Hawk

the Buzzard, 297.
De Kau-ray, Waukon, or Snake Skin

156, 297, 307.
De Kau-ray, One-Eyed, noticed, 156,

295-97.
De la Barre, Gov., mentioned, 67, 110,

111.
De la Bertonniere, Father, mentioned,

87.
De la Come, Chevalier, mentioned, 114.
De la Gemeraye, Sieur, noticed, 67.
De la Gess, Capt., mentioned, 85.
De la Martiniere, Sieur, mentioned, 74.
De Langlades, first settlers at Green

Bay, 9, 115, 118, 297, 323-25.
Delaplaine, Gen. Geo. P., member Ex-
ecutive Com., 1860-'68, 32-38, vii,
viil.
Delaplaine & Burdick, donors, 27.
De La Perotiere. Sieur, mentioned, 76.
De La Potherie, — , early Western

traveler and writer, 112.
De Lignery's expedition against the
Foxes, 1728, 64, 86, 87, 92; histori-
cal notice of, 65, 113.
De Lillier, Count, in Wisconsin, 1827,

188, 190.
Dells of Wisconsin, 298.
Delong, Capt. Cornelius, in Black Hawk

war, 286.
De Longueuil, M., mentioned, 113.
D« Louvigny's expedition to Mackinaw,
1690, 65; petition and defence, 1700,
67 ; disobedience of orders, 1700, 73 ;
De Calllere and De Champlgny on,
1701, 76; projected expedition, 1703,
77 ; expedition against the Foxes,
1716, 64, 78, 80, 81; death, 85; his-
torical notice of, 65, 108.
De Nonville'si expedition against the

Senecas, 111.
De Noyelle, Sieur, services, 107: his-
torical notice of, 65, 120.
De Ramezay, Governor of Montreal, 85.
De St. Ange, father and son, noticed,

65, 107, 121, 122.
De St. Lusson, — , mentioned, 110.
De St. Valller, Bishop, mentioned, 87.
De Tonty, Sieur, mentioned, 76, 77.
Detroit attacked, 1712, 78.
De Vaudreull, Gov., 77, 79, 81, 84, 86,

109, 112, 113.
De Villiers, father and sons, 104, 107,
108, 117, 121, 122; historical notices
of, 65, 118, 119.
Dewey, Gov. Nelson, mentioned, 175,
844.

war, 261, 262, 285; personal narra-
tive, 315.
Diet, change of, producing dysentery,

124.
Dixon, Rev. A. M., early teacher, 347.
Dixon, Capt. Frederick, in Black

Hawk war, 287, 289.
Dixon, Hon. L. H., donor, 29.
Dodge, Hon. A. C, donor, 169.
Dodge, Gen. Henry, letter to Gen. At-
kinson, 1827, 157; 1832, in Black
Hawk war, 259. 260, 262, 263, 285,
307-309, 316, 319; 1832, Peckatonlca
battle referred to, 313, 314 ; papers
burned at Fort Winnebago, 309;
early friend of education, 333, 340,
344, 345; first Territorial Governor,
374; 1837, held Indian treaties, 391;
Pinney's eulogy, 173.
Dodge, William, historical series, 166.
Doolittle, Hon. J. R., a Vice President,
1865-68, 37, 38, vii, viii ; donor, 27.
Dorward, D. J., paints portraits, 28.
Doty, MaJ. Charles, mentioned, 376.
Doty, Hon. James Duane, referred to,
146, 152, 344, 410; life and service*
by Gen. Ellis, 369.
Doty, Mrs. Sarah C, mentioned, 871,

372, 376.
Dousman, Gen. H. L., cited AuCk re-
ferred td, 156, 158, 237, 240, 272,
276.
Drake, S. G., donor, 165.
Draper, Lyman C, aids in reorganizing
the Society, 15 ; corresponding secre-
tary, 1860-68, 32, 38, vii, vlll, 366;
secures books for the society, 8-6;
state superintendent, 1858-59, 3-5,
366; donor, 28; reports resolutions
on Dr. Hunt, 45 ; made remarks on
Gen. Dodge, 117 ; historical notices
by, 65, 108 ; plea for school libraries,
366 ; note on the elder Hole-ln-the-
Day, 400; note on the younger Hole-
in-the-day, 408; notes, historical
and explanatory, 64, 65, 67, 77, 78,
81-83, 85, 86, 89, 91, 92, 96, 97,
102-106, 108, 111, 115-117, 123, 125,
126, 129, 132, 133, 141,' 142, 144-
146, 148, 150-153, 155, 156, 158,
178, 181, 182, 585, 188, 202, 205,
216, 225, 227, 236, 238, 239, 241,
244, 245, 248, 256, 263, 265, 267,
278, 279, 287, 293, 297. 309, -Sll,
312, 319, 325, 341, 350, 352, 376,
389, 392, 396, 411, 415, 416.
Drlggs, Q. W., Wisconsin writer, 171.

42 2 Wisconsin Historical Collections

Du BuiSBon, Sleur, services, 78, 94,

106, 107; historical notice of, 65,

118.
Dubuque, Julian, burial place, 203, 241.
Dumas, — , mentioned, 114, 115.
Dunbar, — , mentioned, 243, 244.
Dunn, Judge, mentioned, 271, 277.
Durkee, Hon. Charles, a vice president,

1862-'63, 34, 35; governor of Utah,

succeeds Gov. Doty, 876.
Durrie, Daniel S., librarian, 1860-'68,

32-38, vii, viU ; writer on Genealogy,

And Wisconsin topography, 171 ;

donoi^, 165.

Baolb's feather, an Indian badge, 125,

131.
Eagle, Grey, Indian chief, 267, 268.
Eagle-Head, a Sioux chief, 135-88.
Eagle, White War. See De Kau-ray,

Scha-chip-ka-ka.

Earl, , a soldier, mentioned, 246.

Early Education In Wisconsin, 231, 252.
Early French documents on Wisconsin

history, needed, 116.
Early Mail facilities, 226.
Early Steamboats on Upper Missis-
sippi, 214, 240, 261, 278.
Editorial Convention of Wisconsin,

donor, 170.
Edwards, Col. Abram, a reminiscence

by, 158.
Education, History of. In. Wisconsin,

821, 852.
Eldredge, Hon. C. A., donor, 28.
Bills, Gen. A. G., early Anglo-American

settler, 376; early teacher, 327, 355;

sketch of Gov. Doty, 369.
Ellis, J. Alder, member Executive Com-
mittee, 1860-'63, 32-35.
Endowment for Society needed, 30, 170.
Emerson, Prof. Joseph, early educator,

349.
Eulogy on Dr. J. W. Hunt, 39, 45; on

Gov. Harvey, 48 ; on Gen. Dodge, 173.
Exploration of the West, early scheme,

note, 115, 116.

Pahnbstock, G. W., donor, 27, 28, 165.

Falling Leaf. See W»ba-sha.

Falrchlld, Hon, Lucius, member Ex-
ecutive Com.. 1864-'68, 36-38, vU,
rlli; friendly offices, 23; remarks on

Gen. Dodge, 177; donor, 27, 28, 166,
168.

Farwell, Hon. L. J., early friend of the
Society, 16; a vice President, 1860,
1866-'68, 32, 38, vii, viil.

Fellows, Rev. George, donor, 27.

Fernandez, D. W., donor, 29.

Fevre River, 315, 317.

Field, Hon. R. S., commends Wiscon-
sin Legislature, 17.

Finney Patch, a lead digging, 318.

Fire Lands Historical Society, donor,
27.

Firmin, Col. F. H,, member Executive
Committee. 1860-'61, 1866-'68, 32, 33,
38, vii, viil ; recording secretary,
1862-'65, 34-37; donor, 27.

Fisher, George, early Prairie Du Chlen
settler, 267.

Fitzgerald, Mrs., mentioned, 377.

Flat Mouth, a Chippewa Chief, 129,
130, 139, 141, 400.

Fletcher, Gen. J. E., Winnebago agent,
279, 280.

Folles Avoines. See Menomonees.

Fonda, John H., noticed, 205 ; remlnl»«
cences, 2D5-248.

Force Library, mentioned, 166.

Ford's History of Illlftols criticised,
300-304.

Forndrook, J., donor, 168.

Forts: Chartres, 119-122; Crawford,
See Prairie Du Chlen; Hamilton,
312; Howard, 225, 353; L' Assump-
tion, 113 ; St. Francis, at Green Bay,
89; Winnebago, 259, 260, 809, 330,
331, 353.

Four Legs, a Winnebago chief, 96.

Fox Indians. See Sauks and Foxes.

Francis, Dr. J. W., books from his
Library, 11.

Franciscan Brothers, a religious order,
91.

Frank, Capt, In Black Hawk war, 286.

Frank, Col. M., early friend of educa^
tlon. 340, 341, 343, 344; on Gov.
Harvey, 63-65.

Franklin, Dr., files of hla paper In
Library, 12, 21, 166.

French boat song, 100.

French Documents from Paris and
Canada, needed, 116.

Frodsham, B., donor, 168.

Frontenac, Gov. De, mentioned, 66, 69,
70, 109, 112.

Frost, J., early settler at McGregor,
242.

Index

423

Qaonisb, Reglstre, killed by Indians,
146, 182, 199, 202.

Gagnler, Madame, bravery rewarded,
146, 153. 187, 199.

Gale, Hon. George, a vice President,
1862, 34 ; writer on Wisconsin his-
tory, 171; cited, 202, 297.

Gale, Lieut. Levin, mentioned, 245-254.

Galena, threatened, 1827, 203, 225; in
1828, 317; In 1832, 289.

Gallssonlere, Gov., mentioned, 114.

Gallagher, J., donor, 27.

Gardenier, Lieut. J. R. B., mentioned,
241-254.

Gftrland, Gen. John, mentioned, 244,
250, 278, 282, 283.

Garneau's Hlsto'ry of Canada, cited,
89, 91. 92, 116, 119.

Gary, D., mentioned, 278.

Gayarre, Hon. Charles, referred to, 121.

Gaylord, Gen. A., donor, 27.

Gehon, Capt. Francis, In Black Hawk
war, 286.

Gemer»ye, Sieur De, mentioned, 67.

Gennet, William, member executive
committee, 1"860, 32.

Gentry, Capt. James H., In Black Hawk
war, 285.

GesH, Capt. De La, mentioned, 85.

GIftson, — , an early teacher, 332.

Gilbert, Samuel, mentioned, 276.

Glllespy, J. C, his work on Green Lake
County, 171.

Gooding, Capt. George, noticed, 142.

Goodrich, Hon. Joseph, founder of
Milton college, 349.

Grals, Sieur De, mentioned, 77.

Grand Pre, Sieur De, mentioned, 77.

Granger, Dr. W. M., donor, 169.

Grangula, An Indian orator, 67.

Grant County Soldiers' Monument,
photograph, 168.

Grant, MaJ. James, mentioned, 114.

Graves, Z. C, early teacher, 346.

Grey Eagle, an Indian Chief, 267. 268.

Green, Maj. John, at Fort Winnebago,
331.

Green, Dr. Samuel A., donor, 165.

Green Bay, 89, 92, 93, 102, 110, 111,
112, 115-117, 158, 159; early mall
facilities, 226; early education, 223,
225-32, 253, 254 ; Mr. Jones, an early
clergyman, 1888, 190; In 1824, popu-
lation, 329-30; In 1825, Inhabitants,
224, 225; In 1827, threatened, 225.

Gregory, John, his work on Wisconsin,
171.

Grlgnon Family, mentioned, 324, 325,
353.

Grlgnon, Augustin, cited, 116, 155.

Grouchy, F. N., mentioned, 278.

Gurnee, J. D., member Executive Com-
mittee, 1860-'68, 32-38, vli, viil.

Haight, Miss Eliza, early teacher, 331.

Hale, Hon. Samuel, early friend of the
society, 17.

Hall girls, capture of, 1832, 260.

Hall, Rev. Mr., missionary, 380.

Hall, Henry, donor, 169.

Hall, J. P., kills Barrette, 258.

Hall & M'Kenney's Indian work, 187.

Hamilton, Capt. I., In Black Hawk war,
286.

Hamilton, Col. W. S., In Black Hawk
war, 286, 310-314; diggings, 817.

Harkelrhodes, — , killed in Black Hawk
war, 289.

Harris, Capt. W. L., noticed, 256.

Harvey, Gov. L. P., early teacher, 847;
eulogy on, 48; photograph, 168.

Hathaway, Mr». Ann J., presents por-
traits, 28.

Hathaway, Hon, Joshua, contributed an
early paper, 16; portrait in gallery,
28.

Hayden, S., donor, 27.

Hazel Green, or Scrabble, 317.

Hazelton, Hon, G. W., a vice Presi-
dent, 1862, 34.

Helena, or Pine Bend, 260.

Hendrlck, King, the Mohawk Sachem,
114.

Henni, Bishop John M,, portrait In
gallery, 28.

Henry, Gen. James D., In Black Hawk
war, 259, 316.

Henry, Capt. William, early Mineral
Point pioneer, 157.

Hill, James L., member Executive Com-
mittee, 1868, vlii.

History, its uses, 2,

History of Illinois, Ford's , criticised,
300-304.

Hoadley, C J., donor, 27.

Hobblns, Dr. Joseph, member executive
committee, 1866-68, 38. vll, vlil.

Hocquart, M., mentioned, 107, 108.

Hoefling, Wm., donor, 29,

Holden, F. A,, donor, 27, 165, 169.

Holden, G. B., donor, 28.

Hole-In-the-Day, the elder, by J. T.
Clark, 378; Dr. Brunson, 387; L. C.

424 Wisconsin Historical Collections

Draper, 400; kills his sniests, 405;

referred to, 413, 416; death, 384,

S99, 403.
Hole-in-the-Day, the younger, news-
paper accounts, 402, 406; by L. C.

Draper, 408; Dr. Brunson, 392, 399.
Holly, Hon. Alanson, donor, 27.
Holmes, Rev. Mead, writer on the war,

172.
Holt, David, donor, 167.
Holt, W. H., donor, 29.
Hoo-Choop, or Four Legs, noticed, 96.
Hood, Mrs. Matilda, pioneer settler,

amhrotype, 168.
Hooe, Maj. A. S., mentioned, 278.
Ho-po-ko-e-kaw, a Winnebago chieftess,

297.
Hosta, Sieur D', noticed, 67.
Howard, Fort, 1827, 225.
Howe. Hon, T. O., donor, 27, 28, 165.
Hoyt, Dr. J. W., editor Agricultural

Transactions, 172.
Hubbard, Gurdon S., early Chicago

pioneer, 216.
Hubbell, Hon. Levi, mentioned, 841.
Hudson, Frank, first donor to the so-
ciety, 16.
Hunt, Dr. John W., aided in re^organ-

izing the society, 15 ; early donor, 16 ;

librarian, 17 ; Gazetteer of Wisconsin^,

171 ; eulogies on, 39, 45.
Huron' Indians, mentioned, 80, 120.
Hyer, Hon. George, member Executive

Committee, 1860-*64, 1867, 32-36, 38,

Vil.
Hyer, Lieut. J. K., donor, 168.

Illinois, state, donor, 27.

Indian honor — the War Eagle De Kau-
ray, 154 ; love of whisky, 99, 123-
125, 384; race for life, a myth. 158;
slaves, 79, 83 ; mode of burying the
dead, 99 ; treatment of starvation, 253.

Indian Agency, removed from Prairie
du Chlen, 259 ; curiosities added to
the cabinet, 168.

Indians "crying for the dead," 99, 123,
130, 131.

Indian treaties, referred to, 1795, at
Greenville, 414 ; 1815, at Spring
Wells, 414; 1816, at Fort Harrison
(?), 414; 1820, conference at St.
Marie, 371, 389, 410-16: 1825, at
Prairie du Chien, 123, 391 ; 1827, at
Butte Des Morts, 179, 225; 1829, at
Prairie Du Chien. 153 ; 1832, at Rock

Island, 308, 309 ; 1837, by Gen. Dodge,

391; 1838-'41, by Gov. Doty, 374.
Ingham, Albert C, editor Agricultural

Transactions, 172.
Iowa, State, donor, 27.
loway Indians, mentioned, 78, 93, 111.
Iroquois Indians, 66, 67, 70, 72, 78,

108, 109, 113, 120.
Irwin, Judge David, 372.

Jackson, Capt. G., donor, 29.
Jewett, Prof. C. C, his catalogue sys-
tem, 8.
Jilson, Hon. J. B.. mentioned, 364.
Johnson, Sir William, mentioned, 114,

118, 122.
Johnston, George, mentioned, 413, 415.
Johnston, John, mentioned, 416.
Johnston, Mrs. John, heroic conduct of,

413, 415, 416.
Joliet, early Western explorer, 322.
Jones, Rev. Mr., early Green Bay

clergyman, 188, 190.
Jones, Hon. George W., Captain in

Black Hawk war, 286, 313 ; delegate

to Congress, 374.
Jonquiere and others, exploration

scheme, note, 115-16.
Jordan, Hon. Charles S., mentioned,

343.
Juneau, Solomon, in 1825, 218-20, 222,

225, 231, 234; in 1827, settlement

threatened, 225, 234.
Justice, early administration of, 128,

129.

Kansas, State, donor, 27.

Ka-po-sia, a Sioux village, 145.

Kearney, Maj. S. W., at Prairie Du
Chien, 238.

Kee-wee-zais-hish, or Flat Mouth, 129,
130, 139, 141, 400.

Kellogg, La Fayette, recording secre-
tary, 1861, 33.

Kenosha, early schools, 336, 340, 341,
346, 347, 354.

Kettle, a Fox Chief, killed, 256.

Ke-wa-kwish-kum, an Ottawa Chief, 414.

Keyes, Hon. E. W., member Executive
Committee, 1868, viii.

Keyes, Rev. S. P., mentioned, 331.

Kho-ya-pa, or Eagle-Head, a Sioux
Chief, 135-38.

Kickapoo Indians, mentioned. 111.

Index

425

King, Mr., killed by Indians, 267, 268.
King, Joe, early Wisconsin pioneer,

221, 222, 231.
Kingsbury, Lieut., in Bad Axe battle,

261.
Kinney, Rev. Dr. M. P., early teacher,

347.
Kinzle, John H., mentioned, 96, 157,

370; addition to Chicago, 370.
Kinzie, Mrs. Juliette A., cited, 96, 155,

181 ; excellence of her work, 181.
Kirby, Miss, early teacher, 332.
Kirkpatrick, — , in Black Hawk war,

289.
Knistinaux Indians, mentibned, 117.
Knowlton, Judge Wiram, noticed, 278,

279, 283.
Krum, Mrs. Mary A., renders French

l)oat song into English, 100.

Ladd, Hon. Azel P., State Superintend-
ent, 365.

La Fayette, Gen., singular incident,
196.

LafitAu, — , early western traveler ano
writer, 112.

La Galissoniere, Gov., mentioned, 114.

La Hont^n, — , early western traveler
and writer, 67.

Langlades, first settlers at Green uay,
9, 115, 118, 297, 323-25.

Lapham, I. A,, a vice president, 1860,
32 ; president of the society, 1862-'e8,
34-38, vii, viii ; delivers address,
1866, 24 ; works on Wisconsin, 171 ;
donor, 29.

La Pointe, early settlement, 322, 324,
330; modern, 379.

Lark, a Sioux chief, 312, 313.

Larrabee, Charles, early Wisconsin
pioneer, 230.

Larriviere, — , early Prairie du Chien
settler, 238.

La Salle, — , early western explorer,
322.

Lathrop, John H., President of Wis-
consin University, 345.

Latour, Maj. L. A. H., donor, 27.

Lawrence, Hon. W. A., a Vice Presi-
dent, 1866-'68, 38, vii, viii.

LeAd Mines, on the Des Moines River,
early knowledge. 111 ; Wisconsin,
1827, consterna,tion of people, 152,
203. 287; mentioned, 315; 1828,
317-19; early schools, 333.

Learned, C. J., mentioned, 275,

Leavenworth, G^n. Henry, anecdote of,
96.

Le Claire, Antoine, mentioned, 300-304.

Lecuyer, Judge, 188.

Legate, Maj. C. F., donor, 168.

Lester. Robert D., murdered, 276, 277.

Lewis, Hon. James T., a Vice Presi-
dent, 1863-'68, 35-38, vii, viii.

Lignery, Sieur De. See De Lignery.

Limmery, — , his power over snakes,
282.

Lindsay, — , early Upper Mississippi
boatman, 144, 145, 147-152.

Little Crow, father and son, Sioux
chiefs, 396.

Little Hill, a Winnebago chief, serv-
ices, 309.

Little Soldier, a Chippewa Chief, 133,
139, 140.

Livre, a French coin, 77.

Locey, Dr. A. T., early teacher, 334.

Lockwood, Hon. James H,, cited and
mentioned, 126, 144, 146, 150-52,
155, 202, 237. 240, 274.

Lockwood, Mrs. J. H., establishes first
Sunday" School, 325.

Logan, the Indian orator, mentioned,
67.

Long, Col. S. H., his work, 171.

Longueuil, M. De., mentioned, 113.

Lord, Rev. Charles, aided in re-organ-
izing the Society, 15.

Loss, Rev. L. H., early teacher, 341.

Lothrop, Rev. Jason, early teacher, 336.

Louvigny, Sieur De. See De Louvlgny.

Love, Rev. W. De Loss, his work on
the war, 171.

Lowry, Gen., Indian interpreter, 307.

Lowry, Rev. David, Indian Agent, 259 ;
Indian teacher, 329. 356.

Ludewig, H. B., early donor, 16.

Lumbering, early, in Wisconsin, 242-
254, 273.

Lusson, M. De St., mentioned, 110.

McBhidb, David, paper on capture of

Black Hawk, 293.
MacDougall, George, mentioned, 370.
MacDougall manuscripts, 102.
McFarland, J. H.. donor V.'.).
McGregor, — , Bloody Run, 365-68.
Mackay, Lieut, ^neas, noticed, 416.
McKay, Col. Wm., expedition against

Prairie Du Chien. 96, 297.
Mackenzie, Lieut. John, noticed, 339,

350.

426 Wisconsin Historical Collections

Mackinac, or Mickinac, Ottawa chief,
103.

Mackinaw, mentioned, 66, 67, 81, 83,
84, 88, 89. 92, 97, 109, 111-113, 118,
121, 158, 378, 414.

Mackinaw boats, 97.

Mclndoe, Hon. W. D., a vice president,
1865-68, 37, 38, vli, viil ; donor, 27,
165.

M'Kenney, Col. Tliomas L., cited and
mentioned, 96, 102, 225; on Win-
nebago War (1827), 178.

McMyler, J. J., writer on the war, 171.

McMynn, Col. J. G., donor, 170 ; early
educational labors, 346 ; state super-
intendent, 366.

Magoun, Rev. Dr. G. F., early teacher,
347.

Mail facilities, early, in Wisconsin, 226.

Mandeville, Jack, heroic conduct, 150,
151.

Manitowoc Indians there in 1818, 159.

Maps and Atlases, in Library, 21, 28,
31, 166.

Marquette, Jacques, early Western ex-
plorations, 9, 322.

Margot River, mentioned, 112.

Markins, Isaac, donor, 29.

Marin, Sieur, early services, 97, 104,
106, 107, 297; historical notice of,
65, 115.

Marin, — , of Acadia, note, 115-16.

Marin, La Marque De, note, 115-16.

Marsh, — , Indian agent, 181.

Marshall, O. H., donor, 27.

Martin, Hon. M. L., Historical Address,
16, 103.

Martlniere, Sieur De, mentioned, 74.

Maskoutln Indians, 110-12.

Massachusetts, State, donor, 27.

Mazzuchelli, Rev. Samuel, early teacher,
328, 349, 355.

Meivin, Sergeant, mentioned, 245-54.

Menaige, Peter, mentioned, 307.

Menomonees, or Folles Avolnes, 89, 93,
98-100. 102-104, 106, 107, 110, 112,
180-82, 218, 231, 256-59, 262, 391.

Meredith, Maj. A. A„ friendly offices,
23.

Merrill, Prof. S. T., early teacher, 349.

Merrill, Mrs. S. T., early teacher, 347.

Merrill, Wm. D., editor Prairie Du
Chien Courier, writes Fonda's remin-
iscences, 205; cited, 408.

Mesnard, — , early missionary, 322.

Messersmlth, John, and sons, early
miners, 318.

Methode and family, killed by Indians,
126-27.

Methodist church, early, at Prairie Du

Chlen, 275. 276.
Miami Indians, mentioned, 110-12.
Michigan, State, donor, 27.
Miller, Hon. A. G., presents his por-
trait, 167.
Mills, Hon. J. T., early teacher, 382.
Mills, Gen. Simeon, member Executive

Committee, 1860-68, 32-38, vli, viU ;

donor, 27, 28 ; on committee on

Dodge resolutions, 177.
Mills, early, on Menomonee River, 278.
Milton College, noticed, 349, 350.
Milwaukee, Indians there in 1818, 160;

Juneau trading there, 218-20, 222,

225, 231, 234; early schools, 836,

354, 357.
Mineral Point, or Shake Rag, 818;

early school, 354.
Minnesota Historical Society, mentioned,

123.
Missi'limacklnac. See Mackinaw.
Mitchell, Martin, Wisconsin historical

writer, 171.
Mix, Charles B., mentioned, 306, 807.
Mone, Capt., or probably Capt. John

Moore, in Black Hawk war, 286.
Montcalm, Gen., mentioned, 114, 117.
Morgan, Col. Willoughby, noticed, 129,

227, 232, 233.
Morse, Mr,, donor, 169.
Mosh-u-e-bee, an aged Indian woman,

portrait of, 167.
Muck-e-ta-pe-nay an Indian chief, 216.

216.
Munsell, Joel, donor, 165 ; historical

series, 166.
Murder Pole, mentioned, 125, 189.

Nah-too-bs-sid, Sioux name for enemy,
130, 139.

Natural history specimens, 169.

Nee-no-hum-pee-kau, captured Blaek
Hawk, 308.

Nelll, Rev. B. D., cited, 65, 12«, 129,
132-33, 144-46, 152, 155. 392, 408.

Ne-o-kau-tah, or Four Legs, noticed, 96.

New England Historic Genealogical so-
ciety, donor, 27.

New Hampshire, State, donor, 27.

Newspaper files, their value, 7, 20.

New Zealand newspapers, In library,
19.

Niles Register, cited, 146.

Nonville, Gov. De, expedition against
the Senecas, 111.

Noyelle, Sieur. See De Noyelle.

Index

+ 27

O'Callaohak, Dr. B. B., cited, 65, 111,
116, 121; N. 7. Colonial Hitt, 198,
116.

O'Harra, Capt., in Black Hawk war,
286.

Old newspaper flies, in Library, 7, 12-
15, 22, 166, 160.

Onontlo, Indian title to Governor of
Canada, 105.

Oreoiie, or Grangula, an Indian or*tor,
67.

Orton, Hon. H. &., early friend of the
Society, 17 ; member Executive Com-
mittee, 1860, 1862-'65, 32, 34-37;
vice president, 1861, 1866-'68, 83,
38, vii, vili.

Ottawa IndiAns, mentioned, 66, 67, 69,
70, 87, 103, 104, 111.

Ouilmette, Antolne, noticed, 216.

Outagamie, Indian name for the Fox
nation, 81-83.

Pacquhttb, Pierre, noticed, 188, 189.
Page, H. M., donor, 165.
Paine, Gen. H. E., donor, 165.
Parker and daughter, early teachers,

334.
Parkinson, Col. D. M., cited, 155; i»

Black Hawk war, 285 ; early friend

of education, 334.
Parkman's Pontlac, cited, 102.
Patterson, J. B., vindicates Black

Hawk's autobiography. 300-304.
Peckatonica battle, referred to, 813,

314.
Peet, Rev. Stephen, hisi work on Wish

consin, 171.
Pelton, E. W., mentioned, 278.
Pennsylvania Gazette, Dr. Franklin's

paper, in Library, 12, 14, 166.
Pemoussa, a Fox Chief, mentioned, 78,

83.
Perotiere, Sieur De, mentioned, 76.
Perrot, Sieur Nicholas, on expedition to

Mackinaw, 66 ; historical notice of,

65, 110.
Peset, M., priest, mentioned, 87.
Peter, a negro, killed by Indians, 1827,

148.
Petite Roche, mentioned, 194, 195.
Phillips, Maj. Asher, mentioned, 158.
Pickard, Hon. J. L., Principal Platte-

ville Academy, 348 ; state superin-
tendent, 363, 366.
Pierce, Lieut. John S., noticed, 412,

415.

Pierce, Lieut. S. W., donor, 27; writer
on the war, 171.

Pierre, M. De, mentioned, 114.

Pike, Gen. Z. M., mentioned, 123, 17Z.

Pike's Hill, referred to, 197.

Pine Bend, or Helena, 260.

Pine, G. W., early banker, 272.

Pinney, S. U., member Executive Com-
mittee (1866-'68), 38, vii, vili; eu-
logy on Gen. Dodge, 173; report*
resolatloiui on Gen. Dodgt; 17T.

Platteville, early schools, 833, 847, 848,
354.

Plympton, MaJ. Joseph, noticed, 896.

Pontlac, referred to, 108.

Porlier, James, early ploneel^ and
teacher, 324, 325, 353.

Potherie, De La, early Western traveler
and writer, 112.

Pottawattomle Indians, mentioned. 94,
103, 110, 112.

Potte, T. D., early miner, 817.

Pouchot's Memoir, cited, 121.

Powers, Hon. D. J., member Executive
Committee. 1860-'68, 32-38, vii, vili;
donor. 165, 167.

Prairie Du Chlen, first settlement, 197,
323, 330; 1814, McKay's expedition,
96, 297; 1825, treaty, 128-25, 891;
1826, Methode and family killed,
126-27 ; 1827, Winnebago war, 179-204,
226; 1828, mentioned, 235-88; 1828,
new tdit building, 242-54; 1820,
treaty, 153; 1880, Coffin killed, 255;
1830, Indian murders near, 256-58;
1832, Black Hawk war, 259-64 ; 1832,
cholera, 259 ; 132, Indian agency
removed from, 259 ; 1834, small pox,
264-65; 1837-39, speculation, hard
times, 270; 1839, early law cases,
270-72; 1842, religious interest and
movement, 275, 276; 1846, garri-
soned by militia, 278, 279; 1848,
temperance society, 282 ; early
steamboats, 214, 240, 261, 273; early
deeds of violence, 277-78 ; early ad-
ministration of justice, 128-29;
early schools, 324-33, 353-54.

Prescott, A. D., cited, 406, 407.

Price, Capt. Glendover, In Black Hawk
war, 286.

Prideaux, Gen., mentioned, 114.

Prophet, Black Hawk's, 294, 308, 309.

Proudfit, Gen. J. K., donor, 165, 167.

Puants, or Winneoagoes, 90, 93, 112.

Puck-a-she, meaning of. 26.

428 Wisconsin Historical Collections

QniNcr, Mies Eliza S., donor, 165.

Qulner, Edwin B., makes valuable do-
nations, 27, 164, 167; work on Wis-
consin Iri^the War, 171.

Qulnn, Indian interpreter, 893, 395.

Ramdzay, Gov. De, mentioned, 85.

Ramsay, Gov., of Minnesota, men-
tioned, 408.

Randall, Hon. A. W., educational ef-
forts, 348.

Randall, Hon. H. S., honorary vice
president, 1867-68, vil. vlil.

Ray, J. H., donor, 27.

Reaume, Judge Charles, mentioned, 824.

Recollet, a monk, mentioned, 91.

Red Bird, Winnebago chief, 141, 143,
145-147, 152, 179, 180, 182, 185-87,
199, 201, 202 ; troops refuse to march
against, 152.

Red Jacket, the Seneca orator, re-
ferred to, 67.

Red Wing, a Sioux village, 145.

Reed, — , early Prairie Du Chien settler,
264.

Reeseden, — , early teacher, 330, 354

Religious Interest, early, at Prairi«
Du Chien, 275.

Renaka, hung at Prairie Du Chien,
238, 239.

Renards, Les, French name for Pox
Indians, 81.

Reynolds, Gov. John, referred to, 144,
150.

Rhode Island Historical Society, donor.

Rice, Hon. Henry M., mentioned, 404.

Richardson, Gen. James, donor, 27;
member Executive Committee, 1868,

via.

Rlley, Wm., Indian Interpreter, 411,
415.

Robbins, Hon. Hamner, early teacher,
348; Normal School Regent, 348.

Roberts & Whiting, donors, 168.

Robinson, Thomas, donor, 168, 169.

Rocheblave, Philip, mentioned, 118.

Roche, Petite, mentioned, 194, 195.

Rock River Valley, Its beauty and pro-
ductiveness, 160.

Rogers, Maj. Robert, mentioned, 117.

Rolette, Joseph, 156, 198, 202, 237,
240, 272, 275, 312, 314, 334, 335,
353.

Root, Hon. Bleaaer, aided In founding

Carroll ^ College, 848; state superin-

tendent, 344, 346, 364-65.
Ross, Hon. James, member Bxecutiye

Committee, 1866-68, 88, vll, vlli ;

donor, 170.
Rountree, Hon. J. H., captain in Black

Hawk wat. 286, 315; early friend to

education, 333; donor, 27.
Rublee, F. M., early teacher, 836.
Rublee, Horace, member Executive

Committee (1860-68), 32-38, vil, viii.
RufFee, Chas. A., mentioned, 408.
Russell, Miss Caroline, early teacher,

881.

Sabbath Schood, early at Prairie Du
Chien, 276, 325.

Sabin, Joseph, donor, 166; historical
series, 26, 166.

Sagonash, Indian name for Bnglish-
man, 411.

Sag-on-do-shee, or Tne Englishman, a
Sioux, 136.

Salomon, Hon. Edward, a vice presi-
dent, 1866-'68, 38, vll, vlll ; early
teacher, 346; delivers address, 24.

Sas-sa-ba, a Chippewa chief, 411, 415.

Saucy Jack, or Jack Mandeville, heroic
conduct, 150, 151.

Sauks and Foxes, 1700, defeated by the
Sioux, 78; 1716, De Louvigny's ex-
pedition, 78-85; 1728, renewal of the
war, 86 ; De Lignery's expedition,
87-95; 1729, defeated by the allied
Indians, 104 ; 1730, March, defeated
by Marin. 95-104 ; May, Du Buisson's
expedition, 106, 107; Sept., defeated
by De Villlers, 107; 1732, Iroquois
and Huron war party, 120 ; 1735,
De Noyelle's expedition, 120 ; 1741,
still troublesome. 113, 114, 120, 121;
1746, a supposed war with, 103 ; 1756-
'57, serve In French war, 117 ; 1825,
treaty at Prairie du Chien, 123. 391;
1827, at war with the Winnebagoes,
193; 1830, kill Sioux, 256; Menom-
onees, 257. 258; 1832, war with
whites, 259-64, 287-92; capture of
Black Hawk, 293-97, 308; Black
Hawk's cave, 298-99; Black Hawk'f
autobiography vindicated, 300 ; Win-
nebagoes engage In the war, 310-314 ;
Sioux engage in the war, 310-314;
Dickson's account, 316-317; David-
son's account, 819; 1838, Black
Hawk's death, 805.

Index

429

Sftult &t. Marie, mentioned, 378-79,
410-16.

Sauteurs, French name for the Chip-
pewfts, 104.

Savage, H. W., early banker, 272.

Savage, Rev. Dr. John A., early edu-
cator, 349.

S€hft-chip-ka-ka, or the White War Eagle,

128, 153-56, 297.

Schoolcraft, H. R., 96, 97, 102, 123,

129, 188, 305, 389, 400, 414-16.
Schools, history of In Wisconsin, 323-

868.

School Libraries, their importance, 366.

Scott, Col. Martin, mentioned, 265, 266,
378.

Scott, Gen. Winfleld, mentioned, 308,
809.

Sears, Miss Frances, early teacher, 832.

Seely, Hon. D. J., donor, 29.

Seven Mile Bluff, 294.

Shane, Rev. John D., a collector of
Western history, 19.

Shea, John G., cited, 65, 112, 329; his-
torical series. 26, 166.

Sheboygan, Indians there, 1818, 159 ;
early schools, 336, 354.

Sheppard, J. H., donor, 27.

Sherman, Capt. John, in Black Hawk
war, 286.

Sherman, S. A., donor, 169.

Shin-plasters, early, 272.

Shipman, Col. S. V., member of Ex-
ecutive Committee. 1862-'65, 33-37;
recording secretary, I860, 1866-68,
32, 38, vli, vlii ; motion relative to
Hunt eulogies, 48 ; donor, 27, 28, 165.

Shippin, E., donor, 27.

Sioux, or Dahkotahs, 78, 99, 111, 112;
most numerous tribe of Canada, 85 ;
at war with Chippewas, 123, 124,
390-96, 400, 401, 403, 404, 408;
mode of burying the dead, 99 ; some
of their villages, 144, 145; 1825-27,
difflcaltlee, 123^5, 147, 391; 1830.
at war with Sauks and Foxes, 356,
357; 1832, join whites, 259, 310-14;
1837, fight with Chippewas, 373. 374.

SInsinawa Mound College, 349, 355.

Skinner, E. W., member executive com-
mittee, 1866-'68, 38, vli. vlii.

Skunk-skin, an Indian badge, 125.

Small pox, at Prairie Du Chien, 1834,
264, 265.

Smith, Hon. A, D., edits Sup. Court Re-
ports, 172.

Smith, Hon. Geo. B., member Execu-

tive Committee, 1861-'68, 33-38, vil,
viii ; remarks on Gen. Dodge, 177.

Smith, Maj. Henry, noticed, 291, 292.

Smith, James, donor, 165.

Smith, Hon. J. Y., member Executive
Committee. 1860-'63, 32-35.

Smith, Hon. Perry H., honorary viet
president, 1867-'68, vli. viii.

Smith, Mrs. S. H., donor, 29.

Smith, Hon. W. E., member Executive
Committee, 1867-'68, vil, viii.

Smith, W. L. G., Life and Times of
Gen. Cass, cited, 411.

Smith, Gen. Wm. R., president of
society, 1860-'61, 32, 33; vice presi-
dent, 1862-'68, 34-38, vli, vlii; aided
to re-organize society, 15 ; delivered
first annual address, 16 ; History of
Wisconsin, 171 ; cited, 65, 81, 82, 86,
91, 103, 141, 144. 146, 148, 151, 152,

Smyrna newspapers, in Library, 19.

Snakes, power over, by one Limmery,
282.

Snelling, Col. Josiah, noticed, 65, 129,
141, 142, 401 ; orders a march on
Red Bird's village, 152; sends mes-
sage to the Indians, 154.

Snelling, Wm. J., noticed, 65, 123, 126,
129, 144, 152, 155; paper on "La
Butte Des Morts," 95; paper on
"Early Days at Prairie Du Chien,"
123.

Song-uk um-eg, or Strong Ground, 400,
401.

Spalding, Rev. H. W., donor, 168.

Spencer, Hon. B. A., donor, 167.

Split-Lip, a Sioux, exploits and death,
137, 139-41.

Spooner, Hon. P. L., edits Sup. Court
Reports, 172.

St. Ange, father and son, services, 65,
107; historical notice of, 121, 122.

Staples, Rev. C. A., donor, 169.

Staples, Mrs. C. A., donor, 169.

Starvation, Indian treatment of, 253.

State Historical Society, its re-organl-
zation, 15-17 ; its early prosperity,
17, 18 ; synopsis of - annual reports,
1860-'66, 1 ; report of, January, 1867,
23 ; January, 1868, 161 ; oflicers,
1860-'66, 32; 1867, vil; 1868, viii;
financial condition, 3, 5, 6, 10-12, 18,
19, 21, 25, 161; library additions,
3-7, 11-14, 16, 19-21, 25-28; newsk
paper files 5-8, 12-15, 19-21, 26, 28,
166; pamphlet additions, 6, 11, 12,
19, 21, 25, 27, 162, 165; maps

43 o Wisconsin Historical Collections

and atlases, 21, 28, 31, 166, 167; ad-
ditions to Cabinet, 29, 168; picture
gallery, 6, 28, 167; Important works
In Library, 13-15, 1«3-166; cata-
loguing Library, 8 ; improvement of
rooms, 8 ; need of additional room,
18 ; rooms In capitol sought and ob-
tained, 20-22; removal there, 23, 24;
fourth volume of collections Issued,
6 ; renewal of publication of collec-
tions needed, 22 ; authorized, 24 ; re-
bellion, a new source of history, 10 ;
endowment and binding funds needed,
30, 170.

Bteam-boats, early, on Upper Missis-
sippi, 214, 240, 261, 273.

Sterling, Prof. J. W., early educator,
846.

Stewart, — , killed by Indians, 1827,
148.

Stewart, Hon. J. W., good offices, 12.

St. Lusson, M. De, mentioned, 110.

Stock, Smith, killed by Indians, 267-68.

Stone, Capt, In Black Hawk war, 287,
288.

St. Pierre, M. De, mentioned, 114.

Street, Gen. Jos. M., noticed, 236, 240,
272, 296; conference with Sioux
Indians, 310-14.

Strode, Col. James M., in Black Hawk
war, 287, 289.

Strong, Hon. L. M., donor, 169.

Strong Ground, or Song-uk-um-eg, a
Chippewa chief, 400, 401.

Stuntz, Mr., donor, 168.

Suckow, B. W., donor, 27.

Sugar Creek diggings, 317.

Sunday Schools, early, at Prairie Du
Chien, 276.

Sutherland, Gen. James, donor, 27 ; a
vice president, 1862-'65, 34-37.

Taintor, Ezeklel, early Prairie Du

Chien settler, 264, 271, 275.
Taliaferro, Lawrence, noticed, 141.
Tallmadge, Gov. N. P., mentioned, 344,

374.
Tank, Mrs. C. L. A., large gift of

books, 162-64, 166-67.
Tank, Otto, lithograph of, 167.
Taylor, Hon. Stephen, donor, 168, 169 ;

honorary vice president, 1867-68, vii,

vlii.
Taylor, MaJ. Zachary, 1818, commands

at Green Bay. 159; 1828-29, at

Prairie Du Chien, 237, 240; a mythi-
cal Incident, 158; 1832, at Bad Ax«
battle, 263.

Tecums6h, goes to New York Indians,
1809, 181 ; joined by Wlnnebagoes,
96, 142, 143; referred to, 411.

Tenney, Maj. H. A., donor, 29.

Tenney, H. W., member Executive Com-
mittee, 1862, 34.

Temperance society, early, at Prairie
Du Chien, 282.

Terry, Capt. John B., In Black Hawk
war, 286.

Thomas, Capt, In Black Hawk war,
286.

Throckmorton, Capt., In Bad Axe Bat-
tle, 361-63.

Tibbits, P. G., member Executive Com-
mittee, 1860-67, 22-38, vll.

Tippecanoe battle. Incidents, 142, 148.

TItlow, A., mentioned, 278.

Todd, Alpheus, good services to the
society, 64.

Tonty, Sieur De, mentioned, 76, 77.

Too-pun-kah Zeze, a Sioux warrior, ex-
ploits and death, 125-141.

Trowbridge, Charles C, cited, 370, 389,
413; on Cass' expedition, 870, 410,
413.

Turner, Prof. H. J., noticed, 64.

Twin Rivers, Indians there in 1818, 159.

Valentine, D. T., valuable donation,

164.
Valier, Bishop De St., mentioned, 87.
Van Der Muelen, Rev. R. J., gathered

Tank Library, 167, 168; lithograph

of, 167.
Van Norstrand, Hon. A. H., member Ex-
ecutive Committee, 1867-68, vii, vIIl.
Van Slyke, N. B., member Executive

Committee. 1865-68, 27, 38, vH, vill.
Vattemare's literary exchanges, fruits

of, 3.
Vaudreuil, Gov. De, mentioned, 77, 79,

81-84, 86, 109, 112, 113.
Vermont, State, donor, 27.
Verplanck, Hon. Isaac A., mentioned,

404.
Vilas, Hon. L. B., member executive

committee, 1866-68, 38, vii, vlil.
Villiers, Sieur. See De Villiers.
Vineyard, Miles, Indian agent, 393.

Index

431

Wa-ba-naw, a Menomonee, 253.
Wa-ba-shaw, or The Falling Leaf, 138,

143, 144, 248, 264; location of vil-
lage, 144, 147.
Wadge-hut-ta-kaw, or One-Byed De

Kau-ray, 156, 295-07.
Wakh-pa-koo-tay's regrets at waste of

whisky, 123-25.
Wa-mftn-doos-ga-ra-ha, a bad Indian,

127, 143.
Wa-pel-lo, a Sauk chief, mentioned, 305.
Warner, B., mentioned, 278.
Warner, Theo., mentioned, 282.
War relics and curiosities, 29, 168.
Washburn, Hon. C. C, commended for

congress by Gov. Harvey, 68.
Wau-ba-na-kees, or New York Indians,

near Green Bay, 182,
Wau-kon Haw-kaw, or Washington De

Kau-ray, 156, 297, 307.
Way-we-te-go-che, Indian name for

Frenchmen, 411.
Wea, French fort on the Wabash, 114,

118.
We-Kau, or the Sun, engaged In mur-
der, 145-46, 179, 182, 184, 186, 199-

202.
Welch, William, remarks on Gen.

Dodge, 177.
Wells, Hon. Daniel Jr., furnishes his

portrait, 28.
Western exploration, early scheme, note,

115-16.
West, — , early Milwaukee teacher,

336, 357.
West, G. M., work on Wisconsin, 171.
West Virginia, State, donor, 27.
Wheeler, A. C, writer on Milwaukee,

171.
Whisky, Indian love of, 99, 123-125, 384.
Whistler, MaJ. Wm., noticed, 178, 185,

194, 202.
White, — , In Black Hawk war, 259.
White Crow, a Winnebago guide to Gen.

Dodge, 295.
White fish, Indians spearing, 169.
White War Eagle, a Winnebago Chief,

128, 153-56, 297.
White, William, early teacher, 832.
Whittlesey, Col. Charles, cited, 328.
Wide Mouth, a Chippewa chief, 120,

130, 139, 141, 400.
Wlggln, J. K., historical Beriea, 166.
Wild cat banking, 272.
Williams, — , early miner, 318.
Williams, Rev. Bleazer, mentioned, 827,

354, 376.

Williamson, Mrs. B. M., donor, 29.

Wilson, Dr., of Sharon, efforts to oava
Gov. Harvey, 62.

Winnebago, Fort, 259, 260, 309, 330,
331, 353.

Wlnnebagoes (Puants), 90, 93, 103,
104, 113 ; originally from Mexico,
142 ; btavery and character, 142 ; *
mode of burying the dead, 99 ; 1811,
at Tippecanoe battle, 96, 142, 143;
1813, at Thames battle, 96; levy
tribute 'on Americans, 96 ; 1825,
treaty at Prairie Du Chien, 123, 391 ;
1827, outbreak, 142-53, 156-58, 178-
204 ; De Kau-ray's Indian honor,
154; 1828-29, a pretended gathering
at Prairie Du Chien^ 158; 1820,
treaty at Prairie Du Chien, 153;
1832, join whites against the Sauks,
259, 306-309; provision for schools,
328; 1846, yet scattered in Wiscon-
sin, 279-82; Four Legs, noticed, 96;
Car-a-mau-nee, noticed, 181 ; De Kan-
rays, noticed, 128, 153^56, 295-07.

Winter, J. W., donor, 29.

Wlota, or Hamilton's Diggings, 317.

Wisconsin Heights, battle, 260.

Wisconsin Historical Collections, cited,
111, 116, 118, 126, 144, 155.

Wisconsin, State, donor. 27, 170.

Wisconsin, meaning of the name, 361 ;
early explorers and missionaries,
322; early trading posts, 323; 1716,
De Louvlgny's expedition, 78-85;
1728, De Lignery's expedition, 86-
95; 1729, allied Indians defeat the
Foxes, 104; 1730, March, Marin
defeats the Foxes, 95-104; 1730,
May, Dn Bulsson'a expedition, 106^
107; 1730, September, De Villiera
defeats the Foxes, 107 ; 1732, Iro-
qnoia and Hurons against the Foxes,
120; 1735, De Noyelle's expedition,
120; 1741, Sauks and Foxes trouble-
some, 113-14, 120-21; 1746, sap-
posed war with Foxes, 103 ; 175e-'57,
Sauks and Foxes in French war, 117 ;
1811, Winnebagoes at Tippecanoe, 96,
142, 143; 1813, Wlnnebagoes at
Thames, 96; 1818, -Col. Edward's
notice, 158; 1825, treaty at Prairie
Du Chien, 123, 391; 1826, Methode
and family killed, 126-27; 1827,
Winnebago out-break, 142-54, 156-
58, 178-204; 1828-'29, mythical In-
cident, 158; 1829, treaty at Prairie
Du Chien, 153; 1830, Sauks and

43^ Wisconsin Historical Collections

Foxee attack Indians, 256-58; 1832,
Sauk war, 259-64, 287-297, 300-304,
306-315; 1835-'36. public land sales,
373; 1836, population, 336; 1836,
schools, 354 ; 1846, constitutional con-
vention, 341, 359; 1848. school laws
enacted, 343; early schools, 323-68;
first settlers educated, 324; first
schools in families, 324, 353 ; schools
among Indians, 326, 354-56; mili-
tary and post schools, 328, 353 ;
early schools in the Lead Region,
833 ; first schools of Eastern set-
tlers, 335 ; system of public schools,
837; State University, 345; graded
schools, 345 ; academies and colleges,
346; early lumbering, 242-54, 273;
field of historic culture, 9; histori-
cal writers, 171-72; encouragement
to emigrants, 159-60.

Wolcott, Dr. B. B., a vice president,
1861, 33.

Woodman, Hon. Cyrus, a vice presi-

dent, 1860-'61, 1867-68, 32, 33, vil,
vili.

Woodward, W. B., historical series, 26,
166.

Wool, Gen., visits Green Bay, 1818,
158.

Worthen, Prof. A. H., donor, 165.

Worthington, Hon. D., member Execu-
tive Committee, 1864-68, 36-38, vll,
viil ; early teacher, 336.

Wright, Hon. H. A., State Superintend-
ent, 866; aided to re-organize the
society, 15.

Wynne's History of British Empire In
America, cited, 81.

Wynne, T. H., donor, 165.

TBLiiOW (or Painted Rock) Creek, 120.
Young, Austin, almost cannibalized,

254.
Young, Hon. B. W., donor, 27.

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