History of the early settlement of the Juniata Valley : embracing an account of the early pioneers, and the trials and privations incident to the settlement of the valley ; predatory incursions, massacres, and abductions by the Indians during the French and Indian wars, and the War of the Revolution, &c.
I 3 "msim 4^6 (nc^ /3i^ \. \ \ o -I ui a < < 3 ■5 ill X h. O (0 III X o z < K. "2 UK oo X Z <. < X X U III 3-1 -l< o z < z o I- (0 z < K li. li. o o z 3 ■J IIISTOllY UF Tilt: EAELY SETTLEMEXT OF TIIK JUNIATA VALLEY: EMBRACING AN ^.ttount of tljc (tuiin ^lionccrs, AND THE TRIALS AND PRIVATIONS INTIDENT TO THE SETTLEMENT OF THE VALLEY, PREDATORY IXCURSIOXS, MASSACRES, AND ABDUCTIONS DV THE INDLVNS DURING THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS, AND THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION, &c. By U. J. JONES. PIIILAPELPIIIA: PUBLISHED BY HEN II Y 15. ASHMEAD, GEORGK ST., AI!i>VK KLEVENTII. 185G. Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1856, by U. J. JONES, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. STEREOTYPED BY I.. JOHNSON AND CO. rHILADELPHIA. flrMcatiiiu; TO MxVJOR B. F. BELL, BELL'S MILLS, BLAIR COUNTY, PENNSYLVAMA. Dear Sir: — I hope your well-known modesty will not Le sLocked when your eyes encounter this notice. In dedicating to you the fruits of ray first historical labors in the field of literature, allow me to say that I am governed by reasons that will justify mc. In the first place, I may cite your well-known and often-expressed veneration and esteem for the memory of the brave old Pioneers of our Valley, their heroic deeds, and their indomitable energy and perseverance, under the most discouraging cir- cumstances, in turning the nnbrokcn wilderness into '-a land flowing ^vith milk and honey." Secondly, you arc the son of one of those self- same old pioneers, (now in his grave,) who, if not a direct actor in some of the scenes portrayed in the pages following, lived while they were enacted, and trod upon the ground where many of them occurred, while the actors in them were his friends and his neiglibors. Manifold, indeed, were the changes he witnessed during a long and useful career; but the common lot of humanity was his, and he now ''sleeps the sleep that knows no waking," where once the lordly savage roaiued, and made the dim old woods echo with his whoop, many, many years ago. Lastly, it was through your encouragement that I undertook the task ; 4 DEDICATION. and it was througli your kind aud liberal s}3irit that I was enabled to make it any tbing more than an unpuhlished history, unless I chose to let others reap the benefit of my labors. These things, sir, you may look upon as private, but I cannot refrain from giving them publicity, since I acknowledge that your liberality has entailed upon me a deeper debt of gratitude than I can repay by merely dedicating my work to you. Allow me, therefore, to dedicate to you, as a small token of my esteem for you, the ''History of the Early Settlement of the Juniata Valley." If there is any thing in it to interest the present generation and enlighten posterity, I am willing to divide the honor and glory of its paternity with you, for I am neither afraid nor ashamed to confess that, although I ici-ote the history/, it was through your generosity that I was enabled to puhlisli the hooh. A careful perusal of the work will, no doubt, convince you that I have labored studiously to make it interesting, not only to the resident of the Valley, but to the general reader, who must admit that, if I have failed, it has not been for lack of the best exertions on my part. In conclusion, should the book prove a failure, and not come up to the expectations of my friends, you can console yourself with the reflection that you made a mistake by inciting the wrong man to an undertaking for which he was unqualified. A pleasant reflection ! I have said, that, as you were the originator of the book, you should share all the Iwnor that might arise from it. I will be more magnanimous still; if the History proves a mere catchpenny swindle, let the odium and execrations of a humbugged public fall upon THE AUTHOR. HOLLIDATSBURG, Pa., NoV. 1855. PREFACE. The design, object, antl aim uf the following pages can be summed ii]) Avitliout any circiim- locntion. Some ten or twelve years ago. a large vohinie of "Historical Collections of Pennsylvania" was published by Sherman Day, which gave a brief history, among others, of the counties com- posing the Valley of the Juniata. Tliis work was followed by a compilation, by I. 1). Ku])p, p]s(|., entitled ''A History of jSrorthuml)erland, Hunting- don, Milllin, Centre, Union, Clinton, Juniata, and Columbia counties." The last, as far as our vallcv was concerned, was almost a reprint of tlic first, with some few additions gleaned from iliu Coh)nial Records and the Archives of the State. I'otli tliesc works were most liberally subscribed for: in fact, the compilation of the counties liad u[)wards of a thouscmd subscribers in Huntingdon c(^unty (Blair 6 PREFACE. not tlien formed) alone! The inducements lield out, in order to gain such an extensive list, were, that the works would be graiDhic histories of the early settlement of this country. In this they signally failed. True, here and there they gave an account of some early occurrence ; but they were exceedingly brief, lacked detail, and in many instances were found grossly inaccurate. Of course, they gave universal dissatisfaction, because the subscribers looked for a faithful record of the stirring events which occurred when this portion of the land of Penn was "the dark and bloody ground." The descendants of many who figured in the trials incident to the settlement of the valley are still living. The fireside recitals of these events made them "as familiar as household words" among those who are now fast passing away ; but they search all histories in vain to find a faithful account of more than a moiety of the struggles, trials, and personal adventures of the pioneers, as well as the many cold-blooded Indian massacres and depredations which spread desola- tion through the land, and laid waste the homes and firesides of so many who located in what was then a wilderness. Let me not be understood as attempting to deny the merits of the works of PREFACE. 7 wliicli I have spoken. As modern histories, giving accounts, or rather descriptions, of the country as it was at the time tlicy were issued, they were faithiul records. Indeed, I will do Mr. Kupp tlie justice to say that I consider his compilation all it professes to be, according to his preface, in Avhich he says: "A full and minute history of these counties can only be expected after a greater accumulation of historical facts is extant for that purpose." The facts necessary to give a minute history of the earlv settlement of the Juniata have been accessible, although it must be admitted that those who could give them from reliable personal recollections have nearly all passed into "the valley and the shadow of death." Some ten or twelve years ago, Judge M'Cune, Judge Adams, Michael Maguire, and Edward Bell, Esq., met at the mansion of the latter gentleman, in Antes township, Blair county, by invitation. These were all old settlers, whose memories dated back to the struggle of the infant colonies for free- dom ; and most vividly did they recollect the Indian butcheries when brave Old England paid a stipulated price for rebel scalps. The reunicm of these veterans was an epoch in their lives, for 8 PREFACE. they bad been cliildren together, had travelled the same rugged path, and, with stalwart frames, sinewy arms, and willing hearts, had earned for themselves names, reputation, and earthly compe- tence. Well may w^e conjecture that, in fighting the battle of life over again in story, some interest- ing incidents were related. During this reunion, a history of the early settlement of the upper end of the valley w^as written, and the manuscript transmitted to the Historical Society of Penn- sylvania, in the expectation that it would be pub- lished in some of their works. This, how^ever, never w^as done ; and when application w^as made to the society for a return of the manuscript, it was either lost or mislaid. Since then, one by one, these old patriots have passed from time to eternity, and the woods and valleys that knew" them for three-quarters of a century shall know them no more. With them would, in all probability, have been buried many important facts, had not the author of these pages called upon the last survivor, Michael Maguire, in October last, and taken down, at length, all his early recollections. The time was most opportune, for he was even then upon his deathbed. The sands of a long life were evidently ebbing fast, and r RE FACE. 9 he knew it, for he gave it as his solemn conviction that the proposed recital uf the past was the last he should ever niahe to mortal man. Althoiigli enfecMcd by age, and his body wasting away, his intellect was vigorous and unclouded, and his memory fresh as it was fourscore years ago. In- deed, I soon found that he had the most retentive meniDr}' uf any man I ever knew, because, in narrating incidents, he gave days, dates, and names, with such ease as almost to stagger belief Of course, to him I am mainly indebted for the material of that part of the History treating of the upi)er end of the valley, especially the occurrences between ITIG and 1782. Mr. M. died on the iTth inst. From a manuscript memoir of E. Bell, Esq., I have also been enabled to glean some useful inibr- mation. He commenced it a short time before his death, and it is to be deeply regretted that a vio- lent attack ui" rheumatism in the hand comi)elled him to abandon the work after writing some six or eight pages. 1 am also indebted to a number of persons for information that has been of value to me. whose names will be mentioned in another plae(> in the worl;. 10 PREFACE. If this volume fails to meet the expectations of those kind friends who have interested themselves in my behalf, it will not be for lack of zeal or per- severence on my part. I am free to confess that the language of the book is not clothed in that attractive garb which makes books popular in the age Ave live in ; but then it must be remembered that I am not, worthy reader, submitting to your judgment a romance, but a History, based u])on immutable and undying Truths. U. J. Jones. HOLLIDAYSBURG, NoV. 1855. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE The Aborigines of the Valley — Their Habits and Customs 17 CHAPTER II. History of the Early Settlers. 4»- CHxVPTER III. JuniatA Island — An Indian Paradise — Rev. David Braincrd — The Early Settlers, Hulings, Watts, and Raskins — Indian Battles — Remarkable Escape of Mrs. Hulings 56 CHAPTER IV. Indian Towns along the Juniata — Lost Creek Valley discovered- Mexico first settled by Capt. James Patterson, in 1751 — Indian Attack upon Settlers at the House of "William White — Ma.s- sacre of White — Capture of John Riddle — His Release from Captivity, etc G8 1-2 CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. BAGE Early Settlers at Licking Creek — Relics of an Indian Battle — House of Robert Campbell attacked — James Campbell wounded and taken prisoner — Scout sent from Sherman's Creek — Encounter with Indians at Buffalo Creek — Five of the Scout killed, etc 76 CHAPTER VI. Tuscarora Valley — Its Early Settlement — Its Mounds and its Forts, Massacres, etc 83 CHAPTER VII. Fort Granville — Old Indian Town — Early Settlers — Captain Jacobs — Assault and Capture of the Fort, etc 91 CHAPTER VIII. Organization of Mifflin County — Dispute with Huntingdon County about the Boundary Line — Riot at Lewistown, etc 98 CHAPTER IX. Kishicoquillas Valley — The Shawnee Chief Kishicokelas — The Mingo Chief Logan 110 -^o" CHAPTER X. Colonel John Armstrong's Expedition against Kittaning — List of the Killed and Wounded — Delaware Chiefs, Captain Jacobs and Shingas, etc 121 CHAPTER XI. Old Indian Town — Indian Paths — Ausihwiek — Murder of John Armstrong and Party — Captain Jack, the Wild Hunter of the Juniata — George Crogan, etc... 133 CONTENTS. 13 ciiAi'TEii xir. PAOE llaystown liraiah — Early Scttloincut of Kaystown — General Forbes's Expedition — Colonels Wasliingtou and Boquct — Colonel Arm- strong's Letter — Smith and his "Black Boys" — Bloody Run — Robbery — Indian 3Iassacrcs — Revolutionary Lieutenants of Bed- ford County, etc 1 ^)1. CHAPTER XTTT. Raystown Branch, continued — IMurder of Sanders and his Family — Englishman and his Wife taken Prisoners — Felix Skelly and Mrs. Elder taken Captives — Their Return, etc 175 CHAPTER XIV. Standing Stone, ancient and modern — Murder of Felix Donnelly and his son Francis, etc 183 CHAPTER XV. Trials of the Early Settlers — Their Forts and other Means of Defence, etc 193 CHAPTER XVI. The Early Settlers— Old Hart, the Indian Trader 198 CHAPTER XVn. The Continental Mills of the Valley 203 CHAPTER XVIII. The Cove — Early Settlement by Dunkards — Indian 3Iassacres and Captivities — Massacre of Ullery and Hammond — A Resistant Duakard, etc 207 14 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIX. PAGE Tommy Coleman, the Indian-Fighter — Surprise of the Dunkard Murderers, etc 218 CHAPTEE XX. Sinking Valley — The Lead Mines — Fort Ptoberdeau — Indian Murder and Heroic Conduct of a "Woman — Encounter with a Savage — Massacre of Roller and Bebault, etc 227 CHAPTER XXI. Tories of the Valley — Their unfortunate Expedition to join the Indians at Kittaning — Captain John Weston, the Tory Leader- Captain Thomas Blair — Capture of the Brothers Hicks — Hano'ino- a Tory — Narrow Escape of two of Weston's men, etc 248 CHAPTER XXII. The Tory Hare — Murder of Loudenslager — Abduction and Murder of Mrs. Eaton and Children — Treatment of Hare by the Set- tlers, etc 259 CHAPTER XXIIL Moses Donaldson — Capture and Murder of his Wife and two Children 266 CHAPTER XXIV. Depredations at the Mouth of Spruce Creek — Murder of Levi Hicks — Scalping of his Child 270 CHAPTER XXV. Stone Valley— McCormick's Fort — Murder of Mi-s. Houston and James McClees— A Dealer in Grain of the Olden Time 275 CONTENTS. 15 CIIArTHR XXVI. PAOI Tuckahoc — Murder of John Cluiliiforcl 280 CHAPTER XXYII. Early ^Settlement of Scotch YiiWey — The JMoorc Family — Massacre of "William Moore — Indian shot by a Boy, etc 283 CHAPTER XXVITI. Woodcock Valley — ]Massacrc of Elder — The Breckenridgc Family — Fight with, and Destruction of, Captain Phillips's Scout by the Indians — Cruel Massacre of ten Men 289 CHAPTER XXIX. Water Street — The Beatty Family — Captain Simonton — Massacre of the Dean Family — Captivity of John Simonton, etc 301 CHAPTER XXX. IToUidaysburg — The IloUiday Family — Death of Lieutenant Ilolli- day at the Battle of Braudywiue — Massacre of a portion of Wil- liam Holliday's Family — John Ilolliday, etc 310 CHAPTER XXXI. Old Indian Town of Frankstown — Indian Burial-Placcs — Massacre of the Bedford Scout, etc 324 CHAPTER XXXII. Shaver's Creek — Mysterious Death of old Shaver — Heroic Conduct of two Children — Abduction of Miss Ewing and 3Iiss McCormick — Peter Crura, the last Victim of the Savages, etc 337 16 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXXIII. PAGE Warrior Ridge — Warrior's Mark — Job Chillaway, Slianey John, and Captain Logan, the last Red Men in the Juniata Valley 347 CHAPTER XXXIV. Conclusion 355 APPENDIX. The Valley as it is 859 EARLY SETTLEMENT OF THE JUNIATA YALLEY. CHAPTER I. THE ABORIGINES OF THE VALLEY — THEIR HABITS AND THEIR CUSTOMS. "When the persevering and adventurous Anglo-Saxon first entered the wilds of the Juniata, his eye, as far as it could reach, hehcld nothing but a dense forest; but his quick penetration observed its natural beauties, its ad- vantages, and tlio fertility of its soil. Hence he did not long stand u^wii the crest of the Tuscarora MounUiin, debating the advantages to be derived from making it his home, or the risk he was taking upon himself in doing so, but plunged Ijoldly down into the valley and called it his own. He found it peopled with dusky warriors and their families, who received him with open arms ; and the golden hues of hope for the future lightened his cares, and made his privations no longer a burden. On the banks of the beautiful river the 2 17 18 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY, majestic stag trod, a very monarch; and the pelhicid stream, from the bubbling brooks that formed it, to its mouth, was filled with the nol^le salmon and sjDortive trout, with little to molest them; for the Indians did not possess the penchant for indiscriminate slaughter of game which characterized their successors. They held that the land was given to human beings bj the good Manitou for a dwelling-place, and not for the purpose of being broken up and cultivated for game. The fish and game were also a free gift from the same spirit, for the sujDport of his peojDle. Hence hunting and fishing for more than what would supply immediate and absolute Avants were held in suj)reme contempt by the red man. The Indians found in the valley, when the whites first invaded it, belonged to three or four tribes — the Delawares, Monseys, Shawnees, and probably the Tusca- roras; all of whom, with the exception of the latter, belonged to one of the eight great Indian confederations scattered over the land, from the Rocky Mountains to what they called, in their figurative language, the rising of the sun. These Indians called themselves the Lenni Lenape, or "original people," of which the Delawares and Monseys were by far the most numerous of the tribes settled in the valley. The Shawnees, a restless, lawless, and ferocious baud, were threatened with extermination by a powerful foe in Florida, when they came to Penn- sylvania and craved the protection of the Lenapes, which was granted to them, and they were permitted to settle upon the lands of the Delawares. The Delaware Indians soon discovered that the Shawnees were quarrelsome and HISTORY OF TIIK JCVIATA VALLEY. 19 treacherous neighbors, aiul their com})aiiy not desirable. Notice was given them to (jiiit, and they settled upon the flats of the Susquehanna, near Wilkesbarre, and from thence they found their way to the Juniata; and there is little doubt but that they were first and foremost in the depredations committed during the French and Indian wars, as well as during the American Revolution. The Tuscaroras did not claim to belong to the Lenape tribes, yet a large portion of them lived in their territory. They came from the South, and joined the Aquanuschioni, or '•' united people," known in history as the Six Nations. As they did not speak the language of either the "united people" or the "original people," it would appear that they were people on their own account, enjoying a sort of roving commission to hunt the lands and fish the streams of any of " their cousins," as they styled all other tribes. The Conoy Indians settled in the valley in 1748. They left the Delaware on the strength of a promise made them by the proprietary government that they should ]je remunerated. The debt, however, we presume, must have been repudiated, for we find that an Indian orator named Arruehquaij, of the Six Nations, made ap- plication to Governor Hamilton, during a "talk" in Philadelphia on the 1st of July, 1749, for something for them. The governor, quite as nuich of an adept at wheedling the savages as the proprietors themselves, returned the Conoy wampum, and "talked" the Seneca orator out of the belief that they owed the Conoys a single farthing, in consequence of their having left their land and settled among the nations of the Juniata of 20 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. their own free will and accord. He ruled out the Conoy claim, and confirmed his opinion by sending them a string of government wampum. Whether this satisfied the Conoys or not does not appear upon the record. We think not — at least we should not suppose that they were half as well satisfied as the Six Nation deputies, who carried away, among other plunder, a quantity of tobacco and pipes, fifty ruffled shirts, and a gross and a half of brass jewsharps ! The Nanticokes settled about the mouth of the Juniata in 1748 or 1749, and in after years spread westward toward the Ohio. This portion of the tribe, when it first came to the Juniata, was not very formidable ; but it increased and became powerful. A number of Mengues, Mingoes, or Iroquois, of the Six Nations, settled a few years afterward in Kishacoquillas Valley, now Mifflin county. Of all the savages in the valley, the Mingoes were probably the most peaceably disposed, although it is a well-attested fact that they were a brave and warlike band. The fathers of the principal chiefs of the Mingoes, settled in the Juniata Valley, had been 'partially (if we may use the term) Christianized by the teachings of the Moravian missionaries, Heckwelder, Zinzendorf, and Loskiel ; and this may account for their desire to live on terms of amity and friendship with their pale-faced brethren. As the Delawares, or Lenapes, claimed to be the original people, we must come to the conclusion that they came toward the east before the Iroquois. They probably came from a northern direction, while the united HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. 21 people worked tlidr wny from tlic northwest to the north- cast. To eall these men original people, in the sense in whieh they applied it, may have heen right cnougli ; but to apply the term to them of original, as oceiipants of the country, is a misnomer, not only according to their own oral traditions, but according to the most indubitable evidence of anLit£uariaiis and geologists. The traditions of the Lenapes w^ere, in eflect, that their ancestors were a mighty band of fierce warriors, who came from the setting of the sun, part of the way by canoes, and the balance of the way over land, — through dense forests, beautiful valleys, over lofty mountains. In their triumphant march they met but one foe, whom they trampled under their feet as the Ijuflalo does the grass under his hoofs, and that this weak and efleminate foe was entirely exterminated. These traditions, vague as they are, and as all oral trar ditions forever must be, have certainly a foundation in fact. Drake, whose Indian history is regarded as the most reli- able, gives it as his opinion, formed only after all the facts could be collected and all the traditions fully digested, that the Indians originally came from Asia, by way of Behring's Straits. The patient investigations made by antiquarians have long since settled the fact, to the entire satisfaction of most people, that a race did exist in this country prior U) the advent and on the arrival of the Indians. The relics of this race, consisting of vases, pipes, earthenware, etc., found during the last century, indicate not only a race entirely different from the Indians, but one much farther advanced in civilization. The Indians, however, it would 22 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA YALLEY. appear, either scorned their handicraft, or never took time to examine thoroughly the habits of these people before they exterminated them in order to possess their country. These relics bear a marked resemblance to those dug from ruins in Egypt, as well as those found in Peru. In fact, the vases, and some of the earthenware, bear such a strong resemblance to the Peruvian antiquities, that it is the settled conviction of some that the earlier settlers of both North and South America were identical, and that the original stock was a tribe of Egyptians. Some writers have asserted that these early inhabitants were non-resistants. This is most unquestionably an error. The traditions of the Indians say that their an- cestors fought many battles before they conquered the countr}' ; but that they ahcays were victorious. Of course, this might be mere vain boasting by the Indians of their ancestors' prowess and skill in war, and such we would look upon it, if their oral history was not strengthened by the fact that, on the banks of the Miami, Muskingum, Kanawha, and Ohio Elvers, ancient fortifications, or at least well-defined traces of them, have been found. Nor is this all; tolerably well-executed implements, evidently intended for warlike j)urposes, have been taken from mounds, as well as many unmistakable stone arrow- heads. Whether this anterior race existed to any considerable extent along the Juniata we are not prepared to say; but that some of them once lived here is more than pro- bable, although antiquarians have failed to extend their researches to the valley. Among the evidences to induce the belief that these ancients once occupied our land, we HISTORY OF TllK JUNIATA VALLEY. 28 shall vvi'w to till' most proininoiit, leaving the reader to make his own deductions. A\ hrn the exeavation for the Pennsylvania Canal was going on, a laborer dug up, near Newport, a stone shaped like a Greek Cross. The formation of the stone bore un- mistakable evidence that it was not a mere freak of nature. This attracted attention, and the stone was thoroughly cleansed, when the transverse was found to contain hiero- glyphics, plainl}- marked with some sharp pointed instru- ment. Persons who saw it supposed that the French might have given it to the Indians, and that they used it for a purpose similar to that for which the Standing Stone was used, and that they brought it from Canada to the Juniata. This supposition was based upon the formation of the stone; but, strange to say, the hieroglyphics bore no resemblance to any thing pertaining to the modern In- dians. It mai/, therefore, have belonged to the anterior race, and the person Avho shaped it may have been utterly ignorant of the fact that it was the symbol of the Christian religion. The cross was sent to Philadelphia to be sub- mitted to the inspection of the savans of the Historical So- ciety, but Avas lost on the way 3 at all events, it never reached its intended destination. Speaking on the subject of antiquities with a j^hysician some years ago, — probably the late Dr. Coffey, — he in- formed us that a skeleton was dug up near Frankstown, which he did not believe belonged to any of the tribes of Indians whose mounds arc scattered so profusely along the Juniata. He arrived at this conclusion from nume- rous jK'rsonal observations he made. In the first ])lace, the body retained a portion of dried withered llesli, and 24 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. portions of papyrus or bark-cloth enveloped the body, so that it must have undergone some species of embalm- ing before sepulture. Embalming was unknown to the Indians. Secondly, the body was in a horizontal position, north and south, whereas the Indians always buried in a sitting posture, with the face to the east. And, finally, the body was buried alone, while the Indian method was to have one common grave for all who died for years. Some articles were found when the skeleton was exhumed; but they were so much corroded as to be useless even for scientific investigation. In breaking up a piece of new ground in Kishacoquillas Valley some twenty-five, or probably thirty, years ago, traces of a well-defined wall were discovered, which was traced, and found to enclose about an acre of ground. Although the stones that formed this wall were the ordi- nary stones found along the stream, fashioned and shaped by the great Architect of the world himself, it is certain that human hands placed them in the position in which they were found. The whole thing was destroyed before any mention was made of it. In addition to these evidences, we have heard of arrow- heads and pottery being dug up in other sections of the valley; but, taking it for granted that they were all In- dian relics, no effort was ever made to have a thorough investigation of their origin. How long this continent was occupied by the Indians found here on the arrival of the Northmen is a mooted point, on which no two historians can agree. The Indian method of computing time by moons is rather A'ague to base a calculation upon. Those who contend that they IIISTOKV OF Tin: JUNIATA VALLEY. 25 originated from one of (lit- lost, tribus of Israel, endeavor to [)r()ve that they have been here for many centuries; \vhile others, basing their caleuhitions upon the usual in- creavseof thi' liuman famil}-, think that the numbers found here on the discovery of the continent ^\ ould indicate that they had been here ])ut three or four centuries.' This we think a reasonable conclusion, for it is an undisputed fact that the Indians, previous to the advent of the Avhites, multiplied quite as rapidly as their civilized brethren; Avliile the tender care and solicitude they evinced for children and aged people induces the belief that the deaths among them were not in proportion as one to six to the births. We now come to the religious belief of the savages found in the Juniata Valley. The general impression of persons who have not read Indian history is that they were idolaters. Such, however, is not the fact. They wor- shipped no " graven image." Their belief was based upon a supreme good and an evil Manitou or spirit, and their subordinates, — the former of which they worshipped, while the anger of the latter was appeased l)y propitiatory offer- ings or sacrifices. It is true they had images, in the ibrni of a head carved out of w^ood, which represented the good Manitou, and which they wore around their necks as a talisman against disease and to insure success in great undertakings; but even Loskiel, who spent a long time among them as a missionary, makes no mention of their worshipping their inanimate gods. Their worship gene- rally consisted of sacrificial feasts, sometimes by the entire tril)e, and at other times by single families. In the fall they iii\ uriubly had a sort of general har\est-home gathering, 26 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. when bear's-meat and venison were served up, — the uni- versal custom being to eat all prepared. When provisions were scarce, such an arrangement was no doubt satisfac- tory; but we can well imagine that when there was an undue proportion of meats to guests the custom must have proved exceedingly irksome. After the meal, the monotonous drum and the calabash with pebbles were brought out, and those who had not gorged themselves to repletion joined in the dance. One of the chiefs usually chanted a hymn, or rather song, of irregidar measure, in j)raise of the Manitous, and extolling the heroic deeds of the ancestors of the tribes. A second religious perform- ance consisted of a sacred dance, in which the men alone appeared, in almost a state of nudity, with their bodies covered with pipe-clay. This was probably a dance of humble contrition. A third feast, or religious observance, consisted of some ten or a dozen of the oldest men and women of a tribe enveloping themselves in deer-skins, stand- ing with their faces to the east, and j)etitioning the good Manitou to bless all their benefactors. There were other religious rites and sacrifices, which can be of little general interest to the reader, such as a sacrificial feast in honor of fire, another to propitiate the Manitou before going to war, &c. We shall, therefore, conclude this part of the subject by gi^'ing the story of an old trader who traded through the valley in 1750. Of course we did not get it direct from his own lips, for he has been dead and in his grave for many years ; but, even if we did get it second- hand, it is nevertheless true. Some time in the spring of 1750, the old trader, whose name has now escaped our memory, received a pressing HISTORY or THE JUNIATA VALLEY. liT invitation to visit Stiuuling Stone a day or two Ijeforo the first full moon in September, as a grand feast was to come off at that time, which would be attended hy six or eight tribes. The trader, foreseeing the chance of brisk barter, brought a large quantity of goods from Lancaster, on pack- horses, and arrived a daj- or two ])ef(^ro the sj^orts com- menced, lie found preparations made for a large com- pany; and he accordingly jjitched his tent on the hill, •while the wigwams of the Indians stood upon the Hat near the mouth of Stone Creek. On the day on which the feast Avas to commence, the trader was aw^akened at an early hour l)y the loud whoops of the savages already arriving to take part in the ceremonies. The day wore on; and when the sun reached the zenith a thousand warriors and their squaws, in their best attire, had gathered upon the green- sward. At the hour of twelve o'clock precisely, a chief, whom the trader supposed to be at least a hundred years of age, arose from the ground, while all the rest retained a cross-legged, sitting posture. The trader understood enough of the Delaware language to ascertain that the feast was one which took place every hundred moons, to render thanks to the Manifov. for preserving them a great people. After congratulating the different tribes, and welcoming them to this friendly reunion, an immense pipe was brought into the arena, which passed from mouth to mouth, each man taking but a single whiH'. Of course the women formed the outer circle, and took no further part in the proceedings than merely looking on. Two half-grown lads followed the big pipe with a small bag of Khuiikimqiie, and ever and anon replenished the bowl. This consumed an hour, during which time there was pro- 28 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. found silence. The old sachem then arose, and said the balance of the day would be given up to festivities. The assemblage broke up into small parties, and as each tribe had their medicine-men, musicians, and prophets along, the turn turn of the drum and the wild chant were soon heard, and the dusky sons and daughters of the forest went into the dance of the gay and light-hearted with a thousand times more vigor than the beau and belle of the modern ball-room. Many of the Indians called upon the trader, and were anxious to barter for '•'•lum;'' but, notwithstanding that he had five kegs of rum, and the most friendly feel- ing existed between himself and the tribes, he refused to deal. In fact, he was a prudent man, and did not consider it altogether safe. The festivities of the day and part of the night were kept up with dancing, singing, and howling. The next day, religious exercises fol- lowed; and on the third a very solemn and impressive ceremony was to take place, to wind up the meeting, at which the trader was urgently invited to be present, and in an evil moment gave his consent to do so. Accordingly he sold all of his barrels or kegs of rum, packed up the balance of his goods, and started his pack-horse train to Aughwick, himself and horse alone remaining behind. At the appointed time in the evening for the feast, a large fire of dry wood was built, and the savages commenced dancing around it, howling, and throwing their bodies into the most violent contortions, first step- ping three or four feet forward, with the body inclined in the same direction ; then, throwing the body back- ward, moved on, keeping time with the drum and the HISTORY OF THE JUxXIATA VALLEY. 29 chant. As one party <i:ot tired, or probaljly roasted out, they danced away, and another set took their pLaces. When the fhv burnt fiercest, and the lurid ihmie lit the surrouitdiuLT liills, a -wild chorus was sung in unison that might have been heard lor miles. This, the trader w\as told, was the hud hymn of adoration. He did not dispute the assertion. The rum he had sold the Indians began to work, and tlie old fox was enjoying some funny- scenes not set down in the bills of the day. Occasionally a chief, under the wild inlluence of the fire-icater, would make n misstep and tramp np(m the burning coals. To see him (putting in a Imvvy allbrded the trader an infinite deal of amusement. At length the pile was reduced to coals, when an Indian brought forth from a wigwam a live dog, and threw him upon the burning eml^ers. Another and another followed, until ten dogs were thrown upon the fire. Of course they tried to escape, but the Indians hemmed them in so completely that this was a matter of impossibility. They set up a dreadful howl, but the Indians drow^ned the canine noise by another stave of their loud chorus. The odor of the roasting dogs did not sit well upon the trader's stomach, and, bidding adieu to his immediate acquaint- ances, he expressed a determination to leave for Augh- wick. This his friends w^ould not permit, and insisted most vehemently that he should see the end of it. As he had seen considerable fun, he thought he might wait and see it out, as the carcasses of the dogs would soon be consumed. In this, however, he was mistaken, for tlie medicine-men drew them from the fire, placed them upon wooden platters, and cut them into pieces. Five or six 30 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. of them carried them aroimd among the auditory, offering to each chief a piece, who not only took it, but eagerly ate it. The conclusion of this feast we give in the trader's own w^ords : — "At last they came where I was sitting, among the only sober chiefs in the party. The stench of the half-roasted dogs was awful. One of them came with his trencher to me, and offered me a piece, — a choice piece, too, as I was an invited guest, being a piece of the most unclean part of the entrails. ' Thank'ee,' said I ; ' never dine on dog.' But this did not satisfy them. One of the pro- phets, laboring under the effects of about a quart of my rum, insisted on me eating what was offered to me. I again declined, when one of the chiefs informed me that it was a very sacred feast, and unless I partook of my allotted portion I would highly insult the Indians, and some of those intoxicated might deprive me of my scalp. The thing was no longer a joke, and I seized the piece of dog entrail and put it in my mouth, in hopes of spitting it out ; but they watched me so close that by one mighty effort I managed to swallow it. I did not wait to see the end of the feast; I had my portion, and thought I might as well retire. I started in the direction of Aughwick, and every half mile the nauseous dog served every purpose of a powerful emetic. I was a much sicker man next day than if I had drank a gallon of my own rum ; and, in all my dealings with the red men, I took particular care never again to be present at any dog feast !" Of the social and general character of the savages we have many contradictions. Heckwelder, the old Mora- vian Missionary, whose innate goodness found "Tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones, and God in every thing," intimated that some of their social habits, such as their tender solicitude for infants and the great deference and respect they paid to the aged, were noble traits in their character. Loskiel says that "in common life and con- HISTORY OF TllK J I'M ATA VALLEY. Difference of rank, with all its consequences, was not to be found among the Indians. They were erpially noble and free. The only difference consisted in wealth, age, dexterity, courage, and ollice." Their hospitality to strangers knew no bounds. In some instances it was carried to extremes. An Indian who would not hospitably entertain a stranger under his roof, and attend to all his Avants as far as lay witliin his power, was held in supreme contempt by all his ac- quaintances. Indeed, the offence was deemed so grievous, that the offender was not only detested and aljhorred by all, 1)ut liable to revenge from the person to whom the common and acknowledged rights of hospitality were denied. Lying, cheating, and stealing, as well as adultery and fornication, were deemed scandalous offences, and were punished. They did not exist to any great extent until the parent of them — dninkcnness — Avas introduced by the white man. To these commendable traits in a savage people there were sad offsets. The savage was cruel and exceedingly bloodthirsty. He never forgave a premeditated injury; and if no opportunity oftered to avenge himself, he en- joined upon his descendants, "even to the third and fourth generation," to revenge him.. A hatred once formed against an enemy could only be (pienched with 32 HISTORY OF THE JUNIATA VALLEY. his blood. He would treasure up a wrong for years, and it would rankle in liis heart until he got his enemy into his power, when flaying, roasting, or killing by inches, was not too cruel a death to mete out to him. Nay, more than this, — in their wars neither age, sex, nor con- dition, were taken into consideration; and the proud warrior who sang the great and heroic deeds of his ancestors for a thousand moons was not too proud to carry in his belt the scalp of an innocent babe ! But then the savage was untutored, and it unquestionably was a part of his religion to put to death an enemy by the most cruel torture; neither did he expect any other treatment if he fell into the hands of a foe. In ordinary life, there undoubtedly was some honor in the Indian, but in war no trait of it was percej)tible in his composition. To slay an enemy while asleep, or destroy him by any stratagem, was a feat to boast of, and claimed quite as much glory as if it had been accomplished by the prowess of arms. To shoot an enemy from ambuscade, or lure him to destruction by treachery that would be branded as most infamous among ci^dlized nations, were looked U230n as exceed- ingly cunning by the Indians. 