Early Western Travels
1748–1846
Volume XIII
Early Western Travels
1748–1846
A Series of Annotated Reprints of some of the best
and rarest contemporary volumes of travel, descriptive
of the Aborigines and Social and
Economic Conditions in the Middle
and Far West, during the Period
of Early American Settlement
Edited with Notes, Introductions, Index, etc., by
Reuben Gold Thwaites, LL.D.
Editor of “The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents,” “Original
Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition,” “Hennepin’s
New Discovery,” etc.
Volume XIII
Nuttall’s Travels into the Arkansa
Territory, 1819
[Illustration: colophon]
Cleveland, Ohio
The Arthur H. Clark Company
1905
COPYRIGHT 1905, BY
THE ARTHUR H. CLARK COMPANY
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Lakeside Press
R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY
CHICAGO
CONTENTS OF VOLUME XIII
PREFACE. _The Editor_ 11
A JOURNAL OF TRAVELS INTO THE ARKANSA TERRITORY, during
the year 1819, with Occasional Observations on the
Manners of the Aborigines. _Thomas Nuttall, F.L.S._
Copyright Notice 24
Author’s Dedication 25
Author’s Preface 27
Author’s Table of Contents 31
Text 35
Appendix:
Section I. An Account of the Ancient Aboriginal
Population of the Banks of the Mississippi
and the Contiguous Country 319
Section II. The History of the Natchez 338
Section III. Observations on the Chicasaws
and Choctaws 353
Section IV. Thermometrical Observations in
the Arkansa Territory, during the year 1819 365
ILLUSTRATIONS TO VOLUME XIII
“A Map of the Arkansas River, by H. S. Tanner” 22
Facsimile of title-page to Nuttall 23
“Distant View of the Mamelle” 153
“Mamelle” 159
“Cadron Settlement” 163
“Magazin Mountain” 185
“Cavaniol Mountain” 203
PREFACE TO VOLUME XIII
The present volume of our series is devoted to a reprint of Thomas
Nuttall’s _Journal of Travels into the Arkansa Territory, during
the year 1819, with Occasional Observations on the Manners of the
Aborigines_, originally published at Philadelphia in 1821.
Nuttall was born in the market town of Settle, West Riding,
Yorkshire, in 1786.[1] His parents being in humble circumstances,
at an early age he was apprenticed to a printer, probably an uncle
who was a member of that craft, in Liverpool. After a few years,
becoming dissatisfied with his employer, he journeyed to London,
where his pecuniary condition approached so near to destitution that
he emigrated to the United States, arriving at Philadelphia in 1808,
aged twenty-two.
In spite of the disadvantages which had beset him in his early years,
a natural love for books and a faculty for application had by this
time given him some knowledge of history, Greek, and Latin, and
much of natural science, already his favorite study. Soon after his
arrival in Philadelphia, he was seeking information relative to a
plant which interested him, when he met Dr. Benjamin Smith Barton;
the interview stimulated him to the botanical studies on which
his fame as a scientist chiefly rests, and he soon began to make
excursions, especially along the seacoast as far south as North
Carolina. In 1810, he accompanied John Bradbury (whose _Travels_
comprise volume v of our series), on the latter’s scientific
expedition into the Missouri country, described in volume v of our
series.
Nuttall returned to Philadelphia early in 1811, and during the
succeeding eight years spent his summers in excursions within the
area east of the Mississippi, his winters being passed in studying
the collections thus acquired. The fruits of these studies appeared
in _The Genera of North American Plants and a Catalogue of the
Species to 1817_ (Philadelphia, 2 vols., 1818), for which he
personally set most of the type. Just before the appearance of this
work, Nuttall, who was already a member of the Linnæan Society of
London, was elected to membership both in the American Philosophical
Society and the Academy of Natural Sciences, at Philadelphia. To the
journal published by the Academy he became a frequent contributor.
Being well acquainted with the cis-Mississippi region, and having
already visited the Northwest, he now turned his thoughts to the
Southwest. He had long desired to visit the Arkansas country,
which still offered a practically virgin field for the scientific
investigator.[2] Accordingly, assisted by a number of friends who
were likewise interested in science,[3] he prepared for the journey
which is herein recorded, and set out from Philadelphia on the second
of October, 1818. Crossing southern Pennsylvania to Pittsburg, and
descending the Ohio and Mississippi by boat, he arrived at Arkansas
Post on January 22, 1819. Thence ascending the Arkansas River, he
reached the recently-founded Fort Smith on April 24. Here he remained
for three weeks, studying the flora of the vicinity. On May 16,
he set out from the post with the commandant, Major Bradford, and
a company of soldiers; and crossed the wilderness to Red River,
following the Poteau and Kiamichi. Near the mouth of the latter,
while loitering to collect some curious plants, he became separated
from his companions and was compelled to spend three weeks with the
squatters, awaiting the departure of a party for Fort Smith, where he
finally arrived after an absence of five weeks.
On July 6, Nuttall again left Fort Smith in the boat of a trader
whose establishment was situated at the mouth of Verdigris River.
Reaching this point on the fourteenth, nearly a month was spent
in making short trips to study the plant-life and geology of the
neighborhood, and in observing the habits of the Osage Indians.
On August 11, accompanied by a hunter for guide, he began the final
stage of his journey, having as its objective the river now called
Cimarron. At this season the streams were stagnant, and the intense
heat, foul water, poor food, and night dews soon brought on a fever,
which came near terminating our traveller’s career. The Indians,
moreover, were an almost constant source of annoyance and danger.
Nuttall rejected the guide’s suggestion of a return to the Verdigris,
and finally it became impracticable; so the two pushed on until the
Cimarron was reached. By this time his fever had somewhat abated, and
an effort was made to ascend that river. The loss of one of the two
horses, however, compelled the abandonment of the project, and a
canoe was built, in which the guide essayed to return by water while
his chief rode the remaining horse. Setting forth in this fashion,
still beset by Indians, who pilfered from them on every pretext, they
soon found that the horse could not keep pace with the boat. The two
travellers thereupon agreed to separate, and Nuttall completed the
journey to the Verdigris alone, arriving, more dead than alive, on
September 15. For a week he was unable to proceed farther; at Fort
Smith another long halt was necessary, but on October 16 he began
the descent of the Arkansas, and reached New Orleans on February 18,
1820, without further mishap.
Two years later, Nuttall was appointed curator of the botanical
garden of Harvard College. He spent several years at Cambridge
cultivating rare plants, pursuing his studies, and delivering
occasional lectures. These years were fruitful in contributions
to _Silliman’s Journal_, the _Journal_ of the Academy of Natural
Sciences, the _Transactions_ of the American Philosophical Society,
and the _American Journal of the Medical Sciences_.[4] A little later
appeared his _Introduction to Systematic and Physiological Botany_,
and at about the same time he produced the _Manual of the Ornithology
of the United States and Canada_ (Part I, Land Birds, Cambridge,
1832; Part II, Water Birds, Boston, 1834). The life at Cambridge
was, however, distasteful to him; he declared that he was, like his
plants, only vegetating. His instincts and habits drew him to the
wilderness, that he might unravel its secrets. About the beginning
of 1833, he had received a collection of plants gathered by Captain
Nathaniel Jarvis Wyeth during a journey overland to Oregon. With
interest in the far Northwest thus quickened, Nuttall joined Wyeth
when he set out on a second expedition,[5] resigning his position
at Harvard when the college authorities refused to grant a leave of
absence. He was accompanied by John K. Townsend, as representative
of the Philosophical Society and the Academy of Natural Sciences.
The party rendezvoused at Independence, Missouri, and began the long
march on April 28, 1834. Nuttall and Townsend passed the autumn
exploring the environs of Fort Vancouver; but as winter drew near,
they embarked on a Boston brig bound for the Sandwich Islands, where
they arrived January 5, 1835. Two months later, leaving Townsend,
Nuttall sailed to the California coast, where he passed the summer,
returning thence to the Sandwich Islands and embarking for Boston
by way of Cape Horn, on board the vessel whose cruise has been made
famous by Dana’s _Two Years before the Mast_.
Upon reaching the United States, Nuttall resumed his abode in
Philadelphia. In 1840, the results of the Pacific journey were
published in the _Transactions_ of the Philosophical Society, in the
form of two long essays, entitled: “Descriptions of new species and
genera of plants in the natural order Compositæ, collected in a tour
across the continent to the Pacific, a residence in Oregon, and a
visit to the Sandwich Islands and California, in the years 1834 and
1835;” and “Description and notices of new and rare plants of the
natural orders Lobeliaceæ, Campanulaceæ, Vacciniceæ and Ericaceæ,
collected in a journey across the continent of North America, and
during a visit to the Sandwich Islands and Upper California.”
Nuttall’s last work, _The North American Sylva; or a Description
of the Forest-Trees of the United States, Canada and Nova Scotia,
not described in the work of François André Michaux_ (Philadelphia,
3 vols., 1842–49), was, as the title indicates, undertaken as a
supplement to the earlier work of Michaux.[6] It was completed on
the eve of his departure from the United States, and entrusted to
a friend for publication. Part one of the first volume appeared in
1842, and the second part the following year. The remaining volumes
were delayed by various causes, not being printed until 1846 and
1849, respectively.
In 1841, by the bequest of an uncle, Nuttall received the estate of
Nutgrove, near Liverpool, with the accompanying condition that during
the remainder of his life he reside in England at least nine months
of each year. Reluctantly leaving the land of his adoption and the
field of his labors, impelled, it is said,[7] by regard for the needs
of his sisters’ families, he retired to the ancestral estate, which
he largely devoted to the cultivation of rare plants. He revisited
America in 1847–48; by taking three months at the end of the first
year and three at the beginning of the next, he was able to spend
six consecutive months outside of England without infraction of the
terms of his relative’s will. After seventeen years of the simple
farm life which both his disposition and circumstances required, his
death came, September 10, 1859, as the result of overstraining in his
eagerness at unpacking a case of plants which had been sent to him
from Asia.
Nuttall’s natural shyness was enhanced by the character of his
studies, so largely pursued in the solitude of the field or forest.
Both in Cambridge and Philadelphia, his circle of acquaintance was
quite small; even his intimates in Philadelphia declaring that they
knew not the place of his residence--his intercourse with them was
largely in their homes. Of a contemplative mind, his manner was often
abstracted, yet with those of like interests he was companionable
and communicative. His head was large and bald, his forehead broad,
his features small; he was fair of feature, and often pale from
application to his work; and stout and slightly stooped of frame,
but above middle height. The story of his explorations proves him
to have been of an active temperament. A persistent worker, his
enthusiasm was unlimited. “To me,” he said, “hardships and privations
are cheaply purchased, if I may but roam over the wild domain of
primeval nature.... My chief converse has been in the wilderness
with the spontaneous productions of nature; and the study of these
subjects and their contemplation have been to me a source of constant
delight.” Several anecdotes are related, which illustrate his ardor.
On one of his early excursions to the Carolina coast, he was badly
bitten by mosquitoes; but, absorbed in his investigations, was
unconscious of the presence of the insects until, upon approaching
a dwelling, he was thought to be afflicted with small-pox, and
well-nigh driven away. When rounding Cape Horn, with the vessel beset
by wind and icebergs, he vainly pleaded with the captain to be set on
shore if only for a few hours, that he might examine the vegetation
of that little-known coast.[8]
Nuttall will chiefly be remembered as a man of science. His work was
painstaking, and he made solid contributions to the knowledge of his
generation. Nor was he in his own lifetime denied his meed of praise,
especially for his botanical work. Contemporary reviews of his
books were usually appreciative; a fellow-member[9] of the American
Philosophical Society left this testimony: “No other explorer of the
botany of North America has, personally, made more discoveries; no
writer on American plants, except perhaps Professor Asa Gray, has
described more new genera and species. His name will live as long as
our Flora remains an object of study.”
The journal of the Arkansas journey, reprinted in the present volume,
while primarily interesting to the scientist is not without value
for the historian. The author was fairly well acquainted with the
principal printed accounts of Spanish and French exploration in
the region, as well as with the reports of the previous American
visitors. But Nuttall’s historical statements are not invariably
accurate; the value of the work lies in the record of his personal
observations, from which we obtain often graphic descriptions of
the settled portions of the Arkansas country and the state of
civilization prevalent there in 1819. Neither does our author neglect
the Indians, in whom he was much interested. His book ranks high as
a source of information regarding the native tribes of that region,
especially the Quapaw; although such of his information as was
obtained second hand needs the corrective of critical study.
In the preparation of this volume for the press, the Editor has had
the assistance of Homer C. Hockett, fellow in American history in the
University of Wisconsin.
R. G. T.
MADISON, WIS., February, 1905.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] The chief source of information concerning Nuttall’s life is
a “Biographical Notice” prepared upon his death by Elias Durand,
for the American Philosophical Society, and published in their
_Proceedings_ for 1859–60 (volume viii, p. 297). Other details are
given in his writings, especially the _Journal_, and in Bradbury and
Townsend, who were his associates on other expeditions (see volumes v
and xxi of our series).
[2] The expeditions of William Dunbar and Dr. George Hunter, who
explored the Ouachita as far as Hot Springs in 1804, under a
commission from President Jefferson, and of Lieutenant James B.
Wilkinson, who descended the Arkansas River under General Z. M.
Pike’s orders in 1806, were primarily geographical and topographical
reconnaissances.
[3] This fact, and the names of Nuttall’s patrons, appear in the
dedication.
[4] For full titles of the numerous essays, see the sketch of his
life, referred to in note 1, _ante_.
[5] Wyeth’s expedition was dispatched for the purpose of establishing
trading posts for the Columbia Fishing and Trading Company.
[6] _Histoire des arbres forestiers de l’Amérique du Nord_ (Paris
(?), 4 vols., 1810–13); translation by Augustus L. Hillhouse, _North
American Sylva, or a description of the forest trees of the United
States, Canada and Nova Scotia_ (Paris, 3 vols., 1819).
[7] See the Durand Memorial.
[8] Dana, _Two Years Before the Mast_, quoted by Durand.
[9] Elias Durand, in sketch already cited.
NUTTALL’S JOURNAL OF TRAVELS INTO THE ARKANSA
TERRITORY
OCTOBER 2, 1818–FEBRUARY 18, 1820
Reprint of the original edition: Philadelphia, 1821
[Illustration:
_A Map of the_
ARKANSAS RIVER,
_intended to illustrate the Travels of
THOˢ. NUTTAL_;
Constructed from his original manuscripts by
_H. L. Tanner_
]
[Illustration: Facsimile of title page]
A
JOURNAL
OF
TRAVELS
INTO THE
ARKANSA TERRITORY,
DURING THE YEAR
1819.
WITH OCCASIONAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE MANNERS Of THE
ABORIGINES.
ILLUSTRATED BY A MAP AND OTHER ENGRAVINGS.
BY THOMAS NUTTALL, F. L. S.
HONORARY MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, AND OF
THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES, &C.
PHILADELPHIA:
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY THOS. H. PALMER.
1821.
EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA, to wit:
[Sidenote: [L. S.]]
BE IT REMEMBERED, That on the sixth day of November, in the
forty-sixth year of the independence of the United States of America,
A.D. 1821, Thomas H. Palmer, of the said District, has deposited in
this office, the title of a book, the right whereof he claims as
proprietor, in the words following, to wit:
“A journal of Travels into the Arkansa Territory, during the year
1819, with occasional observations on the manners of the Aborigines.
Illustrated by a map and other engravings. By Thomas Nuttall, F.L.S.
Honorary member of the American Philosophical Society, and of the
Academy of Natural Sciences, &c.”
In conformity to the act of the Congress of the United States,
entitled, “An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the
copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the authors and proprietors of
such copies during the times therein mentioned.”--And also to the
Act, entitled, “An Act supplementary to an act, entitled, “An act
for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of Maps,
Charts, and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies
during the times therein mentioned,” and extending the benefits
thereof to the arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical
and other prints.”
D. CALDWELL,
Clerk of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
TO
JOSEPH COREA DE SERRA,
MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FRANCE, OF THE
ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON, &C.
ZACCHEUS COLLINS, ESQ.
MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, AND
VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL
SCIENCES, &C.
WILLIAM MACLURE, ESQ.
PRESIDENT OF THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES, AND
MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL
SOCIETY, &C. &C.
JOHN VAUGHAN, ESQ.
TREASURER AND LIBRARIAN OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL
SOCIETY, MEMBER OF THE ACADEMY
OF NATURAL SCIENCES, &C. &C.
_Gentlemen_,
Permit me to lay before you, the humble narrative of a journey,
chiefly undertaken for the investigation of the natural history of
a region hitherto unexplored. Excuse the imperfect performance of
the gratifying task which your liberality had imposed, but which was
rendered almost abortive by the visitations of affliction.
If, in so tiresome a volume of desultory remarks, you should meet
with some momentary gratification, some transient amusement, or ray
of information, the author will receive the satisfaction of not
having laboured entirely in vain.
PREFACE
To those who vaguely peruse the narratives of travellers for pastime
or transitory amusement, the present volume is by no means addressed.
It is no part of the author’s ambition to study the gratification
of so fastidious a taste as that, which but too generally governs
the readers of the present day; a taste, which has no criterion but
passing fashion, which spurns at every thing that possesses not the
charm of novelty, and the luxury of embellishment. We live no longer
in an age that tolerates the plain “unvarnished tale.” Our language
must now be crowded with the spoils of those which are foreign to its
native idiom; it must be perplexed by variety, and rendered ambiguous
and redundant by capricious ornament. Hermes, no longer the plain
messenger of the gods, exercises all his deceit, and mingles luxury
in the purest of intellectual streams.
Had I solely consulted my own gratification, the present volume
would probably never have been offered to the public. But, as it
may contain some physical remarks connected with the history of
the country, and with that {vi} of the unfortunate aborigines, who
are so rapidly dwindling into oblivion, and whose fate may, in
succeeding generations, excite a curiosity and compassion denied
them by the present, I have considered myself partly excused in
offering a small edition to the scientific part of the community,
just sufficient to defray the expenses of the printer, who kindly
undertook the publication at his own risk. I may safely say, that
hitherto, so far from writing for emolument, I have sacrificed both
time and fortune to it. For nearly _ten_ years I have travelled
throughout America, principally with a view of becoming acquainted
with some favourite branches of its natural history. I have had no
other end in view than personal gratification, and in this I have
not been deceived, for innocent amusement can never leave room for
regret. To converse, as it were, with nature, to admire the wisdom
and beauty of creation, has ever been, and I hope ever will be, to me
a favourite pursuit. To communicate to others a portion of the same
amusement and gratification has been the only object of my botanical
publications; the most remote idea of personal emolument arising from
them, from every circumstance connected with them, could not have
been admitted into calculation. I had a right, however, reasonably
to expect from Americans a degree of candour, at least equal to that
which my labours had met with in Europe. But I have found, what,
indeed, I might have {vii} reason to expect from human nature, often,
instead of gratitude, detraction and envy. With such, I stoop not to
altercate; my endeavours, however imperfect, having been directed to
the public good; and I regret not the period I have spent in roaming
over the delightful fields of Flora, in studying all her mysteries
and enigmas, if I have, in any instance, been useful to her cause, or
opened to the idle wanderer one fruitful field for useful reflexion.
Not wishing to enlarge the present publication, or retard it by the
addition of a voluminous appendix, I reserve for a subsequent volume,
which will shortly be issued, _A general view and description of the
aboriginal antiquities_ of the _western states_, and _some essays
on the languages of the western Indians_, and their connection with
those of other parts of the world, involving, in some measure, _a
general view of language, both oral and graphical_.
The surveys and collections towards a history of the aboriginal
antiquities, have remained unpublished in my possession for several
years, and would have been longer withheld, in hopes of rendering
them more complete, had not an unexpected anticipation obliged the
author to hasten to do justice to himself, and claim, at least, that
which was due to his personal industry.
The aboriginal languages of America, hitherto so neglected and
unjustly consigned to oblivion as the useless relics of barbarism,
are, {viii} nevertheless, perhaps destined to create a new era in the
history of primitive language. In their mazes is infolded a history
of morals, of remote connections, of vicissitudes and emigrations,
which had escaped the circumstantial pen of history; and yet, however
strange it may appear, are more durably impressed than if engraven
upon tablets of brass, and possessed of an intrinsic veracity nothing
short of inspiration.
The literary character of the aboriginal languages of America, have,
of late years, begun to claim the attention of the learned both in
Europe and America. The reports and correspondence of the Historical
committee appointed by the American Philosophical Society, stand
meritoriously preeminent in this research; and it must be highly
gratifying to the public to know, that the same members continue
still to labour in the field with unabated vigour. These various
efforts united, I may venture to predict, will be crowned with
successful discoveries which could not have been anticipated, and
which will ultimately contribute towards the development of that
portion of human history, which, above all others, appeared to be so
impenetrably buried in oblivion.
_Philadelphia, November, 1821._
CONTENTS
CHAP. I.--Departure from Philadelphia. Geological remarks. Route
through Harrisburgh and Carlisle to Cammel’s town. Loudon, and
the adjacent mountain scenery. The North Mountain. Cove Mountain.
Passage of the Juniata, and surrounding scenery. Bedford. Organic
remains. The Alleghany Ridge. Stoy’s-town. First indications of
bituminous coal. Laurel Mountain. Greensburgh. Arrival at Pittsburgh;
manufactures; scenery, and peculiar character of its coal-mines.
CHAP. II.--Departure from Pittsburgh. Autumnal scenery. Georgetown.
The unfortunate emigrant. Steubenville. Picturesque scenery.
Wheeling. Little Grave creek, and the Great Mound. Other aboriginal
remains. Marietta. Belpré settlement. Other ancient remains. Coal.
Galliopolis. Ancient level of the alluvial forest. Misletoe.
Aboriginal remains. Big Sandy creek, and commencement of Cane-land.
Corn-husking. Salt creek. Maysville. Organic remains. Cincinnati.
Lawrenceburgh. The French emigrant. Vevay. Madison. Louisville.
Prevalence of particular winds on the Ohio. Falls of the Ohio.
CHAP. III.--Departure from Shippingsport. Velocity of the current.
Troy. Owensville. Indigence of the hunting emigrants. Mounds.
Evansville. The Diamond island. Shawneetown. Grandeur of the
river, and the uncultivated state of the surrounding country. Fort
Massac. Arrival at the mouth of the Ohio. Delayed by the ice of the
Mississippi. {x} A visit from the Delaware and Shawnee Indians.
Observations on their mutual jealousy and improvidence.
CHAP. IV.--Embark amidst the ice of the Mississippi. Run aground on
Wolf’s island in attempting to land. Relieved from this situation,
but find ourselves again involved in it, and are imposed upon by the
extortion of a neighbouring voyager. Pass the Iron banks. Cypress.
Solitude of the country. New Madrid. Oscillations of the earth still
frequent. Point Pleasant. Vestiges of the great earthquake. The
Little Prairie settlement almost destroyed by it. The Canadian reach.
A dangerous and difficult pass of the river. The first Chickasaw
Bluffs. Additional danger and uncertainty of the navigation.
Stratification of the Bluff. A dangerous accident. The second
Chickasaw Bluffs. Observations on their stratification.
CHAP. V.--Pass the third Chickasaw Bluff. Dangers of the navigation,
and solitude of the country. The fourth Bluff of the Chickasaws.
Lignite prevalent. Chickasaw Indians. St. Francis river. Depopulation
of the neighbouring country. Trees of the alluvial forest.
Destruction of the Big Prairie settlement. Scrub grass. Difficulties
of the navigation. Changes of the soil, produced by the agency of the
river. A visit from three of the Arkansa Indians. A dense fog over
the river; the cause of it. Arrival near the mouth of the Arkansa and
White river.
CHAP. VI.--Proceed up White river for the Arkansa. Suspicious conduct
of one of the boatmen. Pass through the connecting bayou, and proceed
up the Arkansa; its navigation; soil and surrounding scenery. A small
French settlement. Extraordinary mildness of the season. Mounds.
Changes in the alluvial lands produced by the agency of the river.
Land speculators. Vegetation of the alluvial lands. The town or post
of Arkansas. Enormous land {xi} claims. Difficulty of navigating
against the current. The Great Prairie. First settlement on the
Arkansa; its present state. Agricultural advantages arising from the
mildness of the climate. Storax. Aboriginal remains. The Quapaws or
Arkansas. Their traditions and character.
CHAP. VII.--Departure from Arkansas. Indian villages. Mooney’s
settlement. Curran’s settlement. Interview with the Quapaw chief.
The Pine Bluffs. Soil, climate, and productions. The Little Rock.
Roads. Mountains. Vegetation. The Mamelle. Cadron settlement. Tumuli.
Soil and climate. Pecannerie settlement. Mountains. Cherokees. The
Magazine mountain. Dardanelle settlement. Manners and customs of the
Cherokees. The war with the Osages.
CHAP. VIII.--Pass several inconsiderable rivulets, and obtain sight
of the Tomahawk mountain and the Gascon hills. Mulberry creek; that
of Vache Grasse. Lee’s creek. Prairies. Sugarloaf mountain. Arrive at
the garrison of Belle Point. A change in the vegetation. The Maclura
or Bow-wood. The garrison. Cedar prairie. Rare plants.
CHAP. IX.--Journey to Red river. Prairies and mountains of the
Pottoe. Pass the dividing ridge. Kiamesha river. Arrival on the banks
of Red river. The murder of a Cherokee; attempts to obtain redress.
Wild horses. Character, geological structure, and rare vegetable
productions of the prairies. Return to the garrison at Belle Point.
CHAP. X.--Continue my voyage up the Arkansa. Geological remarks.
Pass several lesser rivulets, and the outlet of the Canadian and the
Illinois. Salt springs. Obstructions in the navigation. Indications
of coal. Pass Grand river, and enter the Verdigris.
CHAP. XI.--Character of the surrounding country of the Verdigris
river. Remarks on the Osage Indians.
{xii} CHAP. XII.--An excursion up Grand River to visit the Osage
salt works. Geological observations. Return across the prairie; its
general appearance and phenomena.
CHAP. XIII.--Interviews with the Osages. Occasional observations on
their manners, habits, &c. Sickness in the encampment.
CHAP. XIV.--Journey by land to the Great Salt river of the Arkansa.
Proceed across the prairies to the Little North Fork of the Canadian.
Detained by sickness. Continue up the Little North Fork, arrive at
Salt river, and afterwards at the Arkansa. Molested and pursued
by the Osages. Arrive again at the Verdigris, and proceed to the
garrison. Conclusion of the treaty between the Osages and Cherokees.
CHAP. XV.--Proceed from the garrison to the Pecannerie settlement.
Hot springs of the Washita. Phenomena of the seasons.
CHAP. XVI.--Cadron settlement. Arrive at Arkansas. Continue to the
Mississippi. The wandering fanatics. Pirates. Natchez; stratification
of its site, and remarks on its agricultural productions. The
Choctaws. Fort Adams. Point Coupé. Baton Rouge. Opulent Planters.
New-Orleans.
APPENDIX
SECT. I.--An account of the ancient aboriginal population of the
banks of the Mississippi, and the contiguous country.
SECT. II.--The history of the Natchez.
SECT. III.--Observations on the Chicasaws and Choctaws.
SECT. IV.--Thermometrical observations in the Arkansa Territory,
during the year 1819.
A JOURNEY INTO THE INTERIOR OF
THE ARKANSA TERRITORY
CHAPTER I
Departure from Philadelphia--Geological remarks--Route through
Harrisburgh and Carlisle to Cammel’s-town--Loudon, and
the adjacent mountain scenery--The North Mountain--Cove
Mountain--Passage of the Juniata, and surrounding
scenery--Bedford--Organic remains--The Alleghany
Ridge--Stoy’s-town--First indications of bituminous coal--Laurel
Mountain--Greensburgh--Arrival at Pittsburgh; manufactures;
scenery, and peculiar character of its coal mines.
On the morning of the second of October, 1818, I took my departure
from Philadelphia in the mail stage, which arrived safely in
Lancaster, sixty-three miles distant, a little after sun-set. Though
always pleasingly amused by the incidents of travelling, and the
delightful aspect of rude or rural nature, I could not at this time
divert from my mind the most serious reflections on the magnitude and
danger of the journey which now lay before me, and which was, indeed,
of very uncertain issue.
{10} Scarcely any part of the United States presents a more
beautiful succession of hill and dale, than that which succeeds
between Philadelphia and Lancaster; the valley, however, of Chester
county, including Downingston, exceeds every other, except the
site of Lancaster, in fertility and rural picture. It is about
twenty-five miles in length by one in breadth, and pursues from
hence a north-east direction. The rock throughout this valley is
calcareous, and the soil is consequently of a superior quality. This
lime-stone, which has been assiduously examined by the mineralogists
and naturalists of Philadelphia, though not very dissimilar to that
of the western states, except in the high inclination of the strata
and the predominance of spar, has never yet been found to contain any
kind of organic remains, and scarcely any metals more than traces of
iron, manganese, titanium, and lead.
3d.] From Lancaster, I continued my route on foot, as affording
greater leisure, and better opportunity for making observation.
The rain, however, to-day prevented me from proceeding more than
seventeen miles on the road to Harrisburgh.[1] About twelve miles
east of Middleton, I had again occasion to observe certain ledges of
the prevailing calcareous rock, dipping at an angle scarcely under
that of 45°, traversed by sparry veins, occasionally intermingled
with epidote, in which are also imbedded bright, brown-red rhombic
masses of felspar and amorphous quartz, a circumstance which had
formerly fallen under my notice in a pedestrian tour on this road; I
was now, however, enabled to trace this appearance into a connection
with the transition formation which almost immediately succeeds,
presenting masses of agglomerated rock, chiefly calcareous, of
which the fragments are both angular and arrounded. Beyond this, on
the first succeeding hill, occur layers of the old or transition
sand-stone, not always red, though some of that colour appeared in
the vicinity, interlayed with {11} brown-red slate-clay. Afterwards,
and in connection with this formation, appears the green-stone of the
Germans, and the bottoms of the valleys only are calcareous. Twelve
miles west of Lancaster, we enter the fine fertile tract, once known
to the natives of the Susquehannah by the name of _Pe-quay_, or the
Pleasant Fields.[2]
4th.] To Middleton, grunstein and argillaceous trap, with sand-stone
conglomerate, and Spanish-brown slate-clay alternate and succeed
each other, affording an indifferent soil, and forming lofty hills,
with precipitous declivities and narrow valleys. The sylvan hills of
the Susquehanna are, however, calcareous and underlayed with common
bluish grey and chlorite slate, which as at Lancaster abounds with
scattered or imbedded cubic pyrites.[3] The long bridge of a mile and
a quarter, connecting with a small island, crosses a wide and shallow
part of the river, whose bed is of slate (or argillite).
5th.] About half past seven, I left Harrisburgh, and in the
course of the day proceeded through Carlisle to within five miles
of Shippensburg,[4] a distance of about 31 miles, over a deeply
undulated country, evincing, by the ease and comfort of its scattered
population, no inconsiderable degree of fertility in the soil, which
is calcareous. The first considerable chain of hills, proceeding from
north-east to south-west, clad with unbroken forests, appeared on our
left during most part of the day, and indicated an approach to the
mountains.
6th.] This evening I arrived at Cammels’-town,[5] situated at the
foot of the North Mountain. The intermediate and surrounding country
is deeply undulated with hills of a softish sandstone and slate clay.
The more conspicuous hills of shale, accompanied {12} by organic
remains, commence at Chambersburg,[6] and, as in Virginia, are
characterised by the appearance of Pine (_Pinus inops_), and scrub
oak (_Quercus ilicifolia_); here also occurs the fragrant sumach
(_Rhus aromaticum_).
The road, on which several bands of labourers were employed, was
now nearly completed to Pittsburgh, affording that convenience and
facility to the inland commerce of the state which had been so long
neglected. The states of New-York and Virginia, equally interested in
the advancement of their internal trade, now begin to show themselves
as the serious rivals of Pennsylvania, which, till lately, with the
exception of New-Orleans, enjoyed the most considerable portion of
the commerce of the west.
7th.] To-day I proceeded about 21 miles, over a very poor and
mountainous country. From the little village, or cluster of cabins,
called Loudon,[7] we commence the ascent over the North Mountain, by
an easy and well-levelled turnpike. From its summit appeared a wide
and sterile forest extending across the glen, and, only at small and
distant intervals, obscurely broken by scattered farms. The soil is
here argillaceous, a slate-clay passing into argillaceous trap and
siliceous sandstone, occasionally changing into an almost homogeneous
quartz, predominates. At Loudon, there is a small iron-furnace, and
ore in inconsiderable quantities found in the neighbourhood. Passing
this range, sometimes called the Cove or North Mountain, we descend
to M’Connels’-town,[8] which now presents itself in bird’s-eye view
before us, here the soil is calcareous, but still, to all appearance,
destitute of organic remains. Deep and narrow valleys, steep hills
every where presenting shale devoid of impressions, though often so
far bituminous as to blaze, abound, but no coal is to be met with
nearer than the valley of the Juniata, where organic impressions also
commence. Within the great valley of the {13} North Mountain, are
several other lower and interrupted ranges. The chain also called the
North Mountain, proceeding much to the east in its southern course,
presents in that direction acuminated peaks, and appears interrupted
as towards Staunton in Virginia. From this summit we are distinctly
enabled to mark the direction of the South Mountain, so low where we
crossed it as to afford an almost imperceptible ascent.
What still remained of the old road,[9] appeared here as bad as can
well be imagined; a mere Indian trace, without any choice of level,
over rocky ledges and gullies, threatening at every instant the
destruction of the carriages which ventured over it.
8th.] After travelling about 28 miles, I arrived, in the evening,
at the very pleasant and romantically situated town of Bedford,[10]
hemmed in by a cove of mountains to the south and west, near whose
declivity issue the chalybeate springs, occasionally the resort of
the sick and convalescent. Very little of the road over which I came
to-day was yet turnpike, and as bad as may naturally be supposed
over a succession of mountain ridges, which, though scattered, and
interrupted by the passage of waters, scarcely fall short of the
North Mountain in point of elevation. These ridges, of which in the
above distance there are three or four, are all often confounded in
the name of Cove Mountain.
I crossed the Juniata by a wooden toll-bridge, which, like all
other private accommodations in the United States, does not exempt
the pedestrian traveller. The valley of the river is narrow and
romantic, embosomed by cliffs, rudely decorated with clumps of sombre
evergreens, particularly the tall Weymouth pine and spruce, with the
splendid Rhododendron and the _Magnolia acuminata_. As we approach
towards Bedford the valleys widen, are more fertile, and present
calcareous strata still inclined at a lofty angle, and generally
destitute of organic remains. Every elevation, {14} and most of them
short and steep, presents a predominance of argillaceous earth,
either red or greenish and slatey, as it may happen to contain an
admixture of iron or chlorite; there are, however, no iron furnaces
nor ore in this quarter nearer than the vicinity of Huntingdon.
Seams of coal have been discovered on the banks of the Juniata, but
unworthy of notice or difficult to drain. Fifteen miles from Bedford,
coal begins to appear. Indeed, about a mile from the town I observed
in the siliceous sandstone made use of for repairing the road, and
which was obtained in the vicinity, casts of _orthoceratites?_ or
something resembling them, collected into fascicles or clusters,
and aggregated over the surface of the rocks in which they are
found; the transverse septa or channels are all proximate, and their
circumference is about two inches. Excepting a second impression,
something similar, but much smaller (and which rather resembles some
alcyonite), no other reliquiæ appeared in this stone, which is also
the first occurrence of the kind on my journey to the westward.
The mountain scenery, at first so grand and impressive, becomes at
length monotonous; most of the cimes, terraces, and piles of rocks
lose their effect beneath the umbrageous forest which envelopes them,
and which indeed casts a gloomy mantling over the whole face of
nature.
To judge of the inland commerce carried on betwixt Philadelphia and
Pittsburgh, a stranger has but to view this road at the present
season. All day I have been brushing past waggons heavily loaded with
merchandise, each drawn by five and six horses; the whole road in
fact appears like the cavalcade of a continued fair.
9th.] To-day I proceeded about 20 miles from Bedford on the way
to Pittsburgh, and in the evening lodged at a tavern situated on
the top of the Alleghany ridge. About nine miles from Bedford I
first observed {15} the occurrence of fossil shells, consisting
of terebratulites, and amongst them the _Anomia trigonalis_ of
Martyn, with some other species. They occur in the sandstone
employed for mending the road, with which also alternates much
liver-brown argillaceous shale. From hence the dip of the strata
gradually diminishes, and the hills are no longer so short and steep;
slate-clay with appearances of coal are also visible, but as yet
there are no _zoophytic_, or, as some consider them, _phytolithic_
or vegetable impressions. The ascent to the summit of the Alleghany
from the east is much more gentle than that of the North Mountain,
or the other mountains scattered through this valley. The Alleghany,
here from 10 to 20 miles broad, is apparently the boundary of the
transition, and the long slopes and salient coves of its western
declivity are within the range of the secondary formation. Much of
the _Quercus Primos monticola_ (or mountain chesnut oak) presents
itself on the mountain, together with the _Magnolia acuminata_ and
_Sorbus americana_ or service-berry.
10th.] To-day I walked nine miles to Stoystown,[11] if a handful of
houses like this deserves such an appellation. The declivity of the
surface is much more gentle and inconsiderable than that which I
had passed. Indications of coal were also apparent along the margin
of the road. The valleys are now broader, and the soil of a better
quality. The inhabitants, however, chiefly Irish, are indigent, and
considerably deficient in prudence and cleanliness. I spent most part
of the day in collecting seeds of the _Magnolia acuminata_.
11th.] To-day I proceeded 18 miles to the little hamlet of
Liganier[12] lately begun, and passed through Loughlinstown, equally
inconsiderable, except for dram shops, improperly called taverns,
with which this road abounds. The turnpike is completed nearly
throughout this distance, and also to Greensburgh. Towards evening I
crossed the Laurel Mountain, and found abundantly on {16} its western
declivity the _Circæa alpina_. In the valley on the eastern ascent
I likewise saw the _Betula glauca_, and a profusion of the common
_Rhododendron_, which gives the name of Laurel to this mountain.
Indications of coal, and a continued declension in the dip of the
strata are still obvious. The sandstone, which is almost the only
rock I have seen throughout the course of the day, is remarkable
for the absence of organic reliquiæ. In some places it appears
like grauwacke blended with angular fragments of a soft slate. Near
the western base of the Laurel ridge the usual zoophytes make their
appearance, chiefly _Culmaria striata_[13] (_Striaticulmis_ of
Martyn), also casts of enormous channelled _Culmariæ_ like those of
Bradford, in Yorkshire (England). Vegetation at this advanced season
still appeared very luxuriant on the western descent of the Laurel,
and the valleys bore the appearance of fertility.
12th.] This evening I arrived at Greensburgh,[14] 18 miles west of
Liganier. The last considerable mountain range to the west on this
route is Chesnut Ridge, {17} which I crossed to-day. Here I met
with the _Imperatoria lucida_ of Sprengel, also abundance of the
_Cimicifuga americana_ and _Asplenium angustifolium_. The dip of the
strata becomes now more and more inconsiderable, but organic remains,
except those peculiar to the coal formation, are scarcely to be met
with, and there is a predominance of slaty and argillaceous sandstone.
13th.] The turnpike was now completed through the last 40 miles up to
Pittsburgh, and scarcely any undertaking promises more advantage to
the state in general. It will tend to check the competition of the
inland navigation of the state of New York, as well as that of the
state of Virginia, through which the United States have established a
national road[15] as far as the town of Wheeling on the Ohio.
14th.] West of Greensburg, and indeed east of it, from the base of
the Chesnut Ridge, the surface of the country is deeply undulated,
and laborious to travel. The land upon the height is sterile and
thinly populated; still every five or six miles we meet with some
poor-looking hamlet, which commonly, out of 12 to 20 log cabins
composing it, contains six or seven licensed dram shops, besides
three or four stores for the retailing of merchandise. How much is
a scattered and independent population like that of the honest and
industrious Germans inhabiting the eastern parts of Pennsylvania to
be preferred to these towns whose inhabitants are brought together
by no prospect of general industry or economy. To say that coal is
common throughout this country, and that it is generally employed for
fuel, is repeating a fact familiar to every one who has ever visited
the western country.
15th.] To-day I arrived again in Pittsburgh, and endeavour as I
may to drive away my former prejudices against this very important
commercial and manufacturing city, I find it impossible. Nothing
appears to {18} me to predominate but filth and smoke and bustle.
The rivers and surrounding country are engaging and romantic--its
situation--the Thermopylæ of the west, into which so many thousands
are flocking from every christian country in the world--its rapid
progress, and the enterprising character of its inhabitants, are
circumstances which excite our admiration. In national industry, the
true source of wealth and independence, Pittsburgh is now scarcely
inferior to any of the older and larger towns in the Union. The
shores of the Monongahela were lined with nearly 100 boats of all
descriptions, steam-boats, barges, keels, and arks or flats, all
impatiently and anxiously waiting the rise of the Ohio, which was now
too low to descend above the town of Wheeling. A bridge was at this
time nearly completed across this stream, and one of the piers of
another across the Alleghany was also laid.
The day after my arrival I went through the flint-glass works of Mr.
Bakewell, and was surprised to see the beauty of this manufacture, in
the interior of the United States, in which the expensive decorations
of cutting and engraving (amidst every discouragement incident to
a want of taste and wealth) were carried to such perfection. The
productions of this manufacture find their way to New Orleans, and
even to some of the islands of the West Indies.
The president Monroe, as a liberal encourager of domestic
manufactures, had on his visit to those works given orders for
a service of glass, which might indeed be exhibited as a superb
specimen of this elegant art.
Mr. Bakewell was now beginning to employ the beautiful white and
friable sandstone which had been observed near to a branch of the
Merrimec by Mr. Bradbury[16] and myself, as well as others, in
the winter of 1809. It promises every important requisite for the
production of the purest flint-glass, and exists in inexhaustible
quantities.
{19} 16–19th.] Still at Pittsburgh, waiting for an opportunity to
descend the river, which was now almost impracticable in consequence
of the lowness of the water.
19th.] This morning I took a walk to Grant’s Hill,[17] from whence
there is a delightful view of Pittsburgh, and on the hill itself some
very pleasing rural retirements of the wealthy citizens.
My attention, as usual, was directed to the surrounding minerals and
stratification, which are no unimportant matters in the economy of
this settlement. The coal basin, or rather bed, which has been so
long wrought on this hill, about six feet thick, is almost exactly
horizontal, and consequently worked by a simple parallel drift
without making any inconvenient quantity of water. The coal bassets
out towards the edge of the hill, and so near the summit as to
present scarcely any other overlay than a thin shale, more or less
friable, and no sandstone. The dip, such as it is, is to the north
of east, but scarcely manifest. It is bituminous or inflammable,
and of a very good quality. Beneath this single bed of coal, occurs
a fine grained, micaceous sandstone, rendered greenish from an
admixture of chlorite earth; still lower in the series appears a
compact calcareous rock, in which I did not perceive any reliquiæ.
At the southern extremity of the hill, where it approaches the
Monongahela, the laminated micaceous sandstone, however, exhibits
great clusters of _culmariæ_ (_striaticulmis_ of Martyn), almost
ancipitally compressed, and with the striatures very fine. Here the
calcareous rock beneath the micaceous sandstone exhibits masses
of terebratulites, some of which are very minute, but in great
quantities. Near to the precipitous termination of Grant’s Hill, and
in several other contiguous places, the sandstone appears to have
been disintegrated with violence, and the angular fragments again to
have been cemented by a stalactitial deposition of calcareous spar,
of a fibrous {20} texture, almost similar to Arragonite. Seams of
fibrous gypsum, possessing a silky lustre, have also been discovered
in this vicinity.
In the course of this ramble I found abundance of the _Monarda
hirsuta_, which as well as _M. ciliata_, do not much resemble the
legitimate species of the genus.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] For the early history of the site of Harrisburgh, see
Post’s _Journals_, volume i of our series, note 73.--ED.
[2] In colonial days, the Pequea Indians lived on the creek
of that name, in Lancaster County. A township of this county still
bears the name.--ED.
[3] The chlorite slate of the Wissahickon, near Germantown,
considered as primitive, contains similar pyrites with octahedral
crystals of iron ore.--NUTTALL.
[4] For the early history of Carlisle and Shippensburg, see Post’s
_Journals_, volume i of our series, notes 75, 76.--ED.
[5] Cammels’-town (Campbellstown?); no such town remains. The early
settlers in the region were Scotch-Irish, and the name Campbell
appears among them as early as 1766.--ED.
[6] For the early history of the site of Chambersburg, see Post’s
_Journals_, volume i of our series, note 77.--ED.
[7] For history of fort of same name near Loudon, see _ibid._, note
78.--ED.
[8] M’Connels’-town (now McConnellsburg) is the site of Fort
Lyttleton. See _ibid._, note 80.--ED.
[9] _Ibid._, note 82; also Harris’s _Journal_, in our volume iii,
note 3.--ED.
[10] For the early history of the site of Bedford, see Post’s
_Journals_, volume i of our series, note 81.--ED.
[11] For a sketch of Stoystown, see Flint’s _Letters_, volume ix of
our series, note 33.--ED.
[12] For early history of Ligonier, see Post’s _Journals_, volume i
of our series, note 83; also F. A. Michaux’s _Travels_, in our volume
iii, note 14.--ED.
[13] Although we are as yet unacquainted with the internal and
essential physical structure of these organic remains, which have
been hitherto considered as plants, I have thought it necessary to
assume the above generic name as preferable to the improbable, and
at any rate merely ordinal name of _Phytolithus_. The CULMARIÆ, as I
have termed them, are striated or grooved and somewhat compressed,
cylindric, articulated bodies, gradually attenuating from joint to
joint, mostly undivided, or simple, but occasionally bifid, and at
length terminating in a point. On one of the sides they commonly
possess a deep and central channel, and in some species at the
joints present alternate small protuberances and cavities. Their
soboliferous propagation appeared to originate from these joints,
in the form of wart-like or areolate protuberances, and, unlike
plants, they never seem to have produced any thing similar to leaves,
flowers, or seeds.
The tessellated zoophytes, by others also considered as vegetable
remains, which I have termed STROBILARIÆ are subcylindric and often
somewhat conic, but inarticulated; some of the species protruded, as
occasion required, from the centre of those tessellæ, bodies resembling
hollow spines, or (as would appear from a specimen in my possession
from Bradford, in Yorkshire) suckers or hollow cylinders, with circular
contractile and striated mouths. The whole of these processes, when
exserted mistaken for leaves, could also be withdrawn within the body
of the animal, and indeed most of the casts present this quiescent or
contracted state. These bodies likewise exhibit in some specimens a
complicated internal structure.--NUTTALL.
[14] See sketch of Greensburgh in F. A. Michaux’s _Travels_, volume
iii of our series, note 16.--ED.
[15] On national road, see Harris’s _Journal_, in our volume iii,
note 45.--ED.
[16] Bradbury was Nuttall’s companion on the expedition to the upper
Missouri in 1810; see Preface. For observations on the Merrimec
(Maramec), in that year, see Bradbury’s _Travels_, in our volume v,
note 136.--ED.
[17] For origin of the name Grant’s Hill, and history of the site,
see Harris’s _Journal_, volume iii of our series, note 30.--ED.