SUTPOSED WELCH INDIANS. ] g$ 



After he had related it in convention, I requefled him to Traditional ac- 

 repeat it, and committed it to writing. It has certainly fome t °™ of Amc *- ic ][ 

 internal marks of authenticity. The country which is defcribed fuppofed to have 

 was altogether unknown in Virginia when the relation was ^^ " on * 

 given, and probably very little known to the Shawneea 

 Indians. Yet the account of it agrees very remarkably with 

 later difcoveries. On the other hand, the ftory of the large 

 animal, though by no means incredible, has foraething of the 

 air of fable, and it does not fatisfactorily appear how the 

 long period which the party were abfent was fpent; though 

 Indians are, however, fo much accuitorned to loiter away their 

 time, that many weeks, and even months, may probably have 

 been fpent in indolent repofe. 



Without detaining you any more with preliminary remarks, 

 I will proceed to the narration, as I received it from Mr. 

 Childs. 



Maurice Griffith, a native of Wales, which country he left 

 when be was about fixteen years of age, was taken a prifoner 

 by a party -of Shawnees Indians, about forty years ago, near 

 Voiles Fort, on the bead of Roanoke river in Virginia, and 

 carried to the Shawnees nation. Having ftaid there about 

 two years and a half, he found that five young men of the 

 tribe had a clefire of attempting to explore the lources of the 

 Miflburi. He prevailed upon them to admit him as one of 

 the party. They let out with fix good rifles and with fix 

 pounds of powder a^-piece, of which they were, of courfe, 

 j*ery careful. 



On reaching the mouth of the Miflburi, they were firuck 

 with the extraordinary appearance occafioned by the inter* 

 mixture of the muddy waters of the Miflburi and the clear 

 tranfparent element of the Mifliflippi. They flaid two or 

 ihree days arnufing themfelves with the view of this novel 

 fight: they then determined on the courfe which they mould 

 purfue, which happened to be fo nearly in the courfe of the 

 river, that they frequently came within fight of it as they pro? 

 needed on their journey. 



After travelling about thirty days through pretty farming 

 wood land, they came into fine open prairies, on which no- 

 thing grew but long luxuriant grafs. There was a fucceflion 

 €»f thefe varying in (ize, fome being eight or ten miles acrofs 

 fetijtone of them fo long that it occupied three days to travel 



through 



